


Leaving the Shadow of the Bat

by Dreamin_doin



Series: Leaving the Shadow of the Bat [4]
Category: DC Extended Universe, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Canonical Character Death, Darcy Lewis is Bruce Wayne's sister, F/M, I like to wave to Canon as it passes by, Implied/Referenced Torture, Lots of characters make an appearance, Potentially out of character, Self-Discovery, canon typical violence mentioned, past Dick Grayson/Darcy Lewis, self-edited, they gave Bruce Wayne an actual son I can give him a sister
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-02
Updated: 2019-11-20
Packaged: 2021-01-18 16:50:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 32,458
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21280022
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dreamin_doin/pseuds/Dreamin_doin
Summary: Life as a Wayne is never simple. And when your big brother is *the* caped crusader? It's just another Monday for Darcy Wayne.*An AU inspired by my love for both Batman and Darcy Lewis, and the desire to write an AU I hadn't seen before.
Relationships: Steve Rogers/Darcy Lewis
Series: Leaving the Shadow of the Bat [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/984474
Comments: 60
Kudos: 118





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! So there are other pieces of this verse (or adj. to this verse) floating around that you might have read. This is the piece that started the whole idea! The bulk of the story is finished, minus a epilogue. I will be posting the chapters fairly quickly though. I'm more than happy to give out warnings when needed and will post them in the relevant chapter notes. In general though there's nothing overly explicit-I'd say definitely a PG 13 rating. 
> 
> I haven't read the comics so the characters who have not appeared in movies/tv shows are lovingly written in the way I thought they would work best in this verse. As for the characters who have appeared, I liked them enough to include them, but they have probably been changed at least somewhat to fit better into this verse. 
> 
> Lastly thank you for reading, I hope you enjoy!

“Bee? You here?” Bruce Wayne turned towards the voice that had just entered his room and rolled his eyes.

“Yes Dee. Who do you think would be in my room?”

“I dunno. Alfred. Tim. One of the countless women you parade through the manor?” A woman quite a bit younger than Bruce leans against his doorway, ticking the options off on her fingers her tone bone dry, before strolling into Bruce’s room. Bruce rolls his eyes at his baby sister’s antics.

“Did you need something Darcy?”

“Yes. How much of this party is actually for the business merger? Or is it secretly going to be all super heroes, as this is also _technically_ though not _officially_ the merger for the Avengers and the Justice League?”

“Darcy,” Bruce tries to warn her off the topic.

“No! For real? Are there going to be any people from Stark Industries or is it going to be all of his super hero buddies? Like how out of my league am I here? And if its all superheroes do I even need to actually go?”

“Yes, you have to go. Yes, Stark is actually bringing employees though he will also be bringing members of the Avengers. And you are Darcy Wayne, the most eligible heiress in Gotham, and much of the country and have inherited mother’s good looks. You are much more likely to be out of their league, super hero or not.”

Darcy snorts at that, having heard that line from her brother before. “Alright. I won’t bail. But could you please, seeing as at least a good portion of this party is for you and your…friends, try really hard to not have to go into ‘work’ tonight?”

Bruce stops what he is doing to fully answer her. “I can’t make any promises, after all I am not a crime boss. But I will do my best yes. Dick will be there tonight though so even if I do have to leave he can take up the…other part.”

“Oh joy, my ex-boyfriend, and currently the hottest new single superhero on the market. I can’t wait.”

“He won’t be there as Nightwing. He’s going as Dick Grayson, president of the Blüdhaven Wayne Enterprise branch. Though I can’t help the ex-boyfriend part. I thought you two were getting along again?” As much as he now wants this conversation of his sister’s love life to stop, he is curious about the change.

“We were. And then Richard Jonathon Grayson, protégé of all things _Bruce_, decided he needed to turn up the playboy aspect. He’s been all over Blüdhaven and the tabloids. And he mentions our old relationship in several interviews. Without telling me. Saying it was a child’s relationship and he’s ready to grow up from it.” Darcy’s voice is sharp like glass, and Bruce asks his next question very carefully.

“Well…wasn’t it?”

“On some level? Sure. Do I want him to grow from the experience? Of course, that’s how people improve themselves. Do I want him to let me know what he’s saying so that when a reporter asks me if Dick was referring to our sex life as I am leaving the one club I have gone to with my friends in over two months I have a response ready? Yes. Yes I do.”

“Do you need me to talk to him about it?” Bruce asks, cringing internally at the thought of getting involved. Darcy laughed before patting his shoulder, and turning to leave.

“No that’s okay Brucie. I know how to deal with Dick Grayson. I’ll see you in two hours to leave for the venue. That should be plenty of time for you to finish what you’re doing and get ready.”

~~~

As she entered the ballroom in building of their penthouse near Wayne Enterprises, Darcy couldn’t help but straighten her dress yet again. She knew she looked good in it; after all she had good taste in fashion bolstered by the help of a stylist who was hired to make sure all her public appearances went off without a hitch. Still, she always got nervous when making an appearance as a Wayne, and the superheroes didn’t help the situation, despite what her brother said. She was wearing a red lace damask dress that clung to her curves. Her favorite part was the neckline and the way it allowed the dress to be sleeveless (crucial in the summer heat) without being strapless, and therefore showing their guests too much of her cleavage.

When she had gotten a drink and turned to survey the guests before her, a man with messy black hair in a suit with a dark gray shirt and blue tie met her with a small smile.

“Hello Darcy. You’re looking gorgeous as always. How are you this evening? Excited?”

“Dick. Hello. I’m fine. You know how much I dislike these parties.” Darcy can’t help how short she sounds.

“Oh dear. I’m Dick tonight huh? What’d I do?” Darcy tries not to grind her teeth at the laughter she hears in his question.

“I don’t know what you mean. Dick.”

“Course you do. I was always Dick when you were mad at me, and Grayson or Richard almost the rest of the time. Of course, when you were being really sweet, or when you wanted something, you always made use of my middle name. Specially when things got heated,” he tells her with a grin and a saucy wink, having figured out her names for him long ago.

“That is exactly why I am irritated!” she snaps, forgetting that she was pretending to be clueless.

“Ah. Cause you haven’t gotten laid in a while? We’ve all been there before Darce—”

“No you ass! Because you’re talking to reporters about our relationship that we ended _mutually_ and you can’t be bothered to give me a heads up! Do you know how many times in the past week and a half I have had to face some reporter who had a variation on the question of ‘Darcy did you ever see Dick’s dick?’ and I know it’s been like four years and I know that you think it doesn’t matter anymore but as neither of us has publically had another _lasting_ relationship since, of course reporters still bother me about it. Please keep your interview comments restrained to your flings Dick.”

Darcy storms off feeling vindicated while Dick’s mouth is still hanging open in shock. She runs into her brother who is only looking at her with an eyebrow raised.

“He deserved it. He’s also going to deserve whatever I do decide to tell the reporters,” Darcy tells him, just barely restraining herself from waving a finger around as she makes her point. Her brother says nothing, and Darcy has to try really hard to keep her feeling of victory and vindication. Darcy Wayne will not back down to the Batman’s arched eyebrow, masked or not. Ultimately deciding that in this case his former protégé had gotten himself into a situation he needed to deal with himself Bruce decides to say nothing.

“I have someone I’d like you to meet,” he says instead. Darcy nods and they wander off. Before too long Darcy sees a goatee she is all too familiar with, and she tries to hold in a groan.

“Tony Stark, I would like you to meet my sister, Darcy Wayne. It is she that Stark Industries will be dealing with mostly now in its further endeavors with Wayne Enterprises.” As Bruce introduces her to the man that Darcy has had a passing acquaintance with, first as a fellow socialite with too much time on his hands and then as one of the worlds’ first superheroes—besides her brother. The man a few years older than Bruce smiles.

“Its nice to meet you officially instead of just hearing that you were at a party I also attended. I know I, and the other Stark Industries representatives, have had a great introduction to Wayne Enterprises with your brother and I look forward to what our two companies can achieve together. But as I am not really involved in my company any more you should meet who you will be working with,” he tells her good naturedly and draws forth from the small crowd around him a tall, willowy, red-haired woman who Darcy would recognize anywhere. “This is Pepper Potts, my CEO and better half. She works wonders on anything she devotes her time towards. Pep, this is Bruce’s younger sister Darcy. She is working her way up at Wayne and he’s decided she will be working with us.”

“Ohmygod. Hi! Its so nice to meet you. You’ve been my hero since I was like…twelve,” Darcy feels her face get red and she _knows_ that Bruce is standing there with a smirk on his face. She can _see_ Tony’s smirk. Darcy tries to keep any more outbursts in her head knowing that it wasn’t seemly for a Wayne to be fangirling but she can’t help it.

Pepper though takes it all in stride. She smiles happily and shakes Darcy’s hand firmly before letting the younger woman in on a secret. “Its very nice to meet you too Darcy. I’ve been keeping an eye on you and your papers’ since you entered college. You have some very interesting ideas, and I’ve been intrigued by how you are implementing them at Wayne Enterprises. If I thought Tony and I could steal you over to Stark Industries—trust me I would have already tried.”

“We are quite lucky to have Darcy and she is making her way through the company even faster than I did. And this is with my instructions to really test her and her knowledge.” Bruce tells the other two. “Tony, if I may, I have a friend—Oliver—who I think you would really like to meet. Pepper. Darcy. We’ll see you in a little bit.”

And with that, gracefully her big brother has left her to deal with the business half of the party while he deals with the superhero part. Fine by her. Once she gets her bearings she finds that Pepper is quite easy to talk to, and that she is someone Darcy wants to be friends with.

“Well from the sounds of tonight, I think that Stark and Wayne will actually be able to work well together beyond what Bruce and Tony had originally hoped for. Which is reassuring. I’ll admit I was a little worried—I know that their…business is important and of course I want to support it but I was concerned it might come at the cost of profits.” Pepper admits, not concerned about sounding calloused. She was very proud of Tony and the corner that he had turned, especially once he had joined the Avengers. At the same time she was still CEO of his company and even though he had enough money to not need anymore the same could not be said of the employees who needed the board to be happy so the company could keep running. She was sure that Darcy understood this conundrum as well, especially once she added her opinion of the situation.

“Oh thank god. I was worried it was just me. I told him that if this was only going to be his kind of business associates to just let me skip the party. I admire them and respect what they do, but I know when I am way out of my depths,” Darcy tells the taller woman with a general wave of her hand encompassing most of the guests.

“Listen, let me introduce you to someone I think you will like. She’s a scientist who works for us, and she knows what its like. Her boyfriend is like Tony, but she just wants to keep working on her research.” Pepper starts walking away and after a moment Darcy follows. The woman that Pepper leads Darcy to is not what she was necessarily expecting. The short brunette woman standing at the little cocktail table seemed bored out of her mind and Darcy noticed she had started writing on a napkin.

“Doctor Foster! This is Darcy Wayne—she _uniquely_ understands what our companies are poised to accomplish by working together.” A knowing glint shines from Dr. Foster’s eyes, figuring it must be some kind of code Darcy went with it.

“It’s very nice to meet you. I almost applied for your summer scholarship Doctor Foster but that was right after the Joker and his band of EVIL had attacked Gotham and I was needed here.”

“I had heard a little bit about that Miss Wayne. No hard feelings though, and please its Jane.” The slight woman takes a break, pushing the scrap paper away from her just a little to pay attention to the situation.

“Then its Darcy. Please tell me what you are working on?” Darcy asks, genuinely curious. After a while, when it is clear to anyone who bothered to look over in their corner that Darcy and Jane were getting along like a house on fire, Pepper bids them farewell and went to check on another friend she had seen. Jane is delighted that she doesn’t have to stop often to explain her work, and the questions Darcy does ask are ones that she wouldn’t have thought of but don’t revolve around how much money Jane can make someone.

“It’s too bad that you didn’t become my intern. Your help would have been invaluable!” Jane tells her after an hour of easy conversation.

“Oh I doubt it! I’m not really a scientific mind; I just spend a lot of time with our tech director Luscious Fox,” Darcy admits with a rueful chuckle. “I just like to look at things from different angles. Bruce is the real science guy. His mind is working at everything as if it was the most curious puzzle in the entire universe.”

Before Jane can argue the point any further a small trio of men approach them. Two are very blond and the other had darker hair. The man in the front is one of the tallest and blondest men Darcy has ever seen in her life. She recognizes him in an instant. Thor Odinson—the first alien to land on Earth and claim that title with a laugh (the ones before him _had_ hid from the title generally). Darcy had met Superman only once but she thought the two might end up finding a lot in common. The other blond man had a jawline that Darcy was pretty sure she had seen on social media before. She couldn’t immediately place the third man, but he did have that certain stubborn well-defined jaw she had come to expect from super-hero types. His straight, long, brown, hair was a shade or two lighter than her own, though his skin had definitely seen the sun for longer and more often than Darcy’s had. He was wearing the type of smirk that Darcy was quite well acquainted with though thank-you-very-much.

“My lady Jane! Who is your new companion?” Thor asked sweeping Jane’s hand up for a kiss. Darcy couldn’t help her smile when she saw how at the gesture the scientist’s cheeks had flushed a bright pink.

“Um this is Darcy Wayne. She works with Wayne Enterprises,” Jane tells them.

“It is nice to meet you! I can tell from watching Jane that you must have been a worthy conversation partner about my love’s science.” Thor grabs Darcy’s hand as well and also kisses it with all the breeding she would expect from an ancient kingdom’s prince no matter how alien or more technologically advanced they were.

“Oh no, it was Jane who was the worthy conversation partner. I forgot that I was at a party I was originally reluctant to go to.” Turning her attention to the other two men, she does a sweep of the guests who are currently watching them and finds one more man with a matching smirk. Darcy has to remind herself not to roll her eyes. She addresses the other blond, ignoring the man with the smirk. “There is, in my experience, only one reason for someone to come up in a group with the sort of smirk your friend is wearing on his face. And I’ve found someone else with a matching smirk who is way too interested in this conversation so…what prank or bet have they tried to arrange with you?”

The man, his face serious before, breaks out in the sort of grin that has Darcy wondering absently where she left her sunglasses. “Sam, the man at the bar, thought I would trip and fall when I started talking to you, ‘cause he’s convinced I always fall over pretty girls. And this jerk over here bet that I wouldn’t know what to say to a society dame like you. He said that even if you asked me a question point blank I’d mumble some answer to my shoes.”

Darcy arches an eyebrow in an expression that is eerily similar to her brother’s at the so-called jerk. “I think you both lost. Do you have an actual name or is it just Jerk? It wouldn’t surprise me. After all I already know a Dick who has that same smirk.”

“Nah kitten I have a name. ‘S James Buchanan Barnes, or Bucky, at your service.” Darcy can tell he’s aiming for charming but she makes sure her hands are far away from his, in case he gets it in his head to be like Thor.

“Ah, yes. I remember reading your interview about your recovery with Time. Well I am very glad that you are back with friends, and hope that your recovery continues to progress well. If there’s anything that Wayne Enterprises can do to help please let me know. In the future I wouldn’t bet against your friend…”

“Jesus Punk. Your mother’d be ashamed not introducing yourself when meeting a lady. You sure he still won that bet?” Bucky asks Darcy, shooting a taunting look at his friend.

“Steve. Steve Rogers.” The capeless blond offers over his friend, before hissing, “Shut it Buck.”

Darcy watches all of this with interest, before coming to a decision. “No, I’m sure. Steve definitely didn’t mumble into his shoes. And between his companions and his jaw line I had a pretty good idea of the few men I might be talking to. Now meaning no disrespect to you Mr. Barnes, or the incredible life story that I’m sure is waiting to fall from your lips with the slightest of invitations, I was wondering if Mr. Rogers would like to join me for a drink?”

Not waiting for a second Steve surges forward, smoothly offering his elbow for Darcy as they walked away. As they left she was sure she caught Bucky muttering “It’s London all over again, Christ.” They order their drinks and then find an empty table. Both of them feel eyes on them as people from across the party stare at the pair. Darcy can’t help but think its because she’s with Captain America, and likewise he feels its because he’s with a Wayne. The Waynes had been an old, moneyed, well-known family even when he was a kid. The silence between them is awkward for just a moment before Steve decides to break it.

“You’ll have to forgive Bucky. He really is a good guy. I mean after all he’s still one of my best friends. One of the easiest things from our past for him to reclaim has been his…self-assuredness with ladies. But—”

“Steve. I’m sure James Barnes is a good man. You don’t need to convince me. I’d like to get to know him better at some point. But I get the impression he is in some ways too much like my ex, and that was confirmed for me with that trouble-making smirk he wore. Dick always uses it to get his way. Not that he isn’t a good man who I trust with my life. I’d much rather get to know you though than talk about either of them right now though.”

“But why?” Steve asks before he can stop himself.

“Because something about you tells me that you want to be just Steve as much as I want to be just Darcy, and its nice to have someone who you can be that way with. Unless you don’t think that’s possible.” Darcy bites her bottom lip, suddenly not sure about how her decision. Maybe she had read the man before her wrong. Steve sees the change in her demeanor and pats her arm a little awkwardly.

“Nah, I think we can do that. Buck’s not entirely wrong—I’m not great with society ladies. But I could get to know just Darcy right quick.”

Darcy can’t help the toothy grin at the odd turn of phrase.

“So what do you think of Gotham?” She asks, propping her chin on a well-manicured hand.

“Its something. I think its changed even more than New York. I was here once before—during the USO tour. ‘Course I didn’t stay long but it was a sight to see Darcy. Your family—and a few other of the folks with fortunes—were keeping the city afloat in a way the Rockefellers’ and Carnegies’ weren’t during the Depression. Not that people weren’t still hurting in a bad way but it was…different. It makes me sad that the economic problems of the ‘80s were enough to bring this city down. But I imagine that losing some of the only remaining adults in your wealthiest family would mean a tumble for any city. Th-Though I’m sure its even harder for their family members, I’m sorry I wasn’t thinking, just remembering.” Steve won’t look at her when he makes his apology. He hadn’t really thought of whom he was talking to, but the image of Gotham dark on the water, city auditorium lights shining out like some sort of palace was an intoxicating memory. He had stopped by it before the party to show Bucky since he had never seen it in the first place, only to find it in disrepair and vacant.

“No you’re right. Though I wouldn’t share that memory with Bruce. He tries very hard to take care of the city and help save historic buildings. You know the philanthropic type of stuff that I’m sure Tony mentions all the time. But…if you performed where I think you did that building will very likely never see Wayne money while my brother is alive. It’s where they were murdered. I think my brother would be happiest if the building burned to the ground. He knows what an outcry that would cause though so he just ignores it and instructs our charity to do the same. I understand of course, even though I have no memories of them so I don’t know that it bothers me the same way.”

“That makes sense, but just ‘cause your grief is different doesn’t mean its not still valid.”

“Thanks Steve. I-I appreciate it.”

They sit in silence for a few more minutes, sipping their beverages. Steve has to stop himself from shoving his head into his hands. Sam and Bucky were right after all, he still couldn’t talk to beautiful women.

“Ya know, I snuck in there once with some friends. It _was_ beautiful even though it was falling apart.”

“You’re a trouble maker aren’t you?” Steve asks, his eyes twinkling at the idea.

“I mean, I try to stay out of the spotlight, so I avoid certain kinds of trouble but I realize that my family’s name and money gives me opportunities others lack, I try to do right by the people at my company even if it causes me other problems. Plus I like to adventure and sometimes trouble comes with that.” Darcy shakes her head from side to side. She had ended up on the front cover of a magazine on her way to after prom with Dick. Lots of accusations had been made and she had done her best since then to be very aware of where reporters would be. But she wouldn’t let her last name keep her in Wayne Manor never leaving.

“I get it. My ma made sure to instill a strong sense of right and wrong, I still use what she told me to guide me today.”

“The tree thing?” Darcy asks with a small smile.

“Uh…yes?” Steve pauses, knowing what she was talking about but unsure how she would know about it.

“Steve. My brother and Tony have been working on this deal for a year and a half. Tony Stark is a blabber mouth.”

That startles a laugh from Steve and he sits chuckling for a full minute before he manages to calm down, nodding the whole time. “Um so, I was hoping to go see the Gotham Art Museum tomorrow…would you wanna go with me?”

“Are you asking me on a date Mr. Rogers?” Darcy asks, eyes flashing with good natured laughter.

“Yes I am Miss Wayne. It would be an honor if you said yes. I’m here ‘til Sunday if tomorrow won’t work.”

Darcy looks at him—really looks at him—and doesn’t say anything for a minute. Finally she slowly agrees. “Alright. Why not? Pick me up at noon? From the manor?”

“Sounds like a swell plan.” Steve grins at her with boyish charm. After that he seems to pick up on flirting very quickly, making Darcy blush several times. Though she gave as good as she got and he often supported red cheeks as well.

Darcy had lost track of time, but slowly she started to realize that most people had started to leave. She excused herself, and went to play hostess. Steve watched her as Bucky came back up to him. The young woman he had talked to was still vibrant, still someone he would want to talk to, but she had managed to hide that streak of sass that both he and Bucky had been subject to.

“Good talk?” Bucky asks, leaning against the table.

“Yeah. I’m going to the museum with her tomorrow.”

Bucky considers this information, before finally nodding, “Good for you Stevie. Make sure you pay at least half the ‘mount of attention to her that you will the paintings, yeah?”

“Yeah, yeah. I’ve dated more recently then you have.”

“Nah, Tash and I went on a date last week.”

“Then why were you flirting with Darcy?”

“Please, who wouldn’t flirt at least a little with a girl like that? You know Natasha would.”

~~~

Darcy sighed when she slid into the limo that was waiting for her and Bruce, for all that she had ended up having fun at the party it still drained a lot of her energy. She was giving her brother exactly ten minutes before she just told the driver to leave. Though if the criminals knew all the supers who were in the city tonight as part of Tony’s entourage they might think otherwise about doing anything illegal so her brother might go straight home tonight. Less than five minutes later Bruce did get in the car but he was accompanied by Dick.

“Let me guess, Dick “drank” too much to be allowed to drive back to Blüdhaven so he has to come home?” Darcy says into the window, where she’s been curled up too tired to really look at either man.

“No. But its late. And I’m tired and actually don’t want to drive to Blüdhaven? I’d much rather stay at home tonight.” Dick tells her, sounding a little defensive. “That is, if its alright with _you_ your majesty.”

“Grayson, you’re allowed to do whatever you want. After all you still have your room. You can always come back to the manor. Bruce would never kick you out.” Bruce wisely keeps his mouth shut, having gotten in the middle of their arguments before and never liking it. Instead he signals the driver to leave.

“The manor isn’t just Bruce’s house Darcy.”

Silence greets that statement. Its true though. The manor is legally both of theirs, but in actuality Darcy is the one who has stamped her presence on almost every room in the house. Its her who really helps it feel like a home.

“I wouldn’t kick you out either. Even if you are being stupid to reporters.”

Dick’s jaw twitches, with frustration. “I am sorry. To be honest though he’d sprung the question on me. I hadn’t told them any topics to stay away from, and you were right earlier tonight. I thought we had broken up so long ago that no one would care anymore. I wasn’t prepared to answer but I tried to anyways. I should have called you after to warn you what might be coming but I hoped that he would just leave it alone.”

“Well, next time—don’t hope, okay? Just let me know.”

“I will. You better make sure you make that policy clear with Captain America,” Dick is looking out the window when he says the last part so casually that Darcy is immediately suspicious.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Darcy demands at the same time Bruce asks her, “You’re going out with Captain Rogers?”

“I told him I would go with him on a date to the art museum tomorrow,” she explains to Bruce. To both of them she adds, “Honestly I really expect him to pay more attention to the art. Then he’ll leave Sunday and that will be the end of it. Alright?”

“What happened to ‘I don’t date superheroes Dick’ and ‘I can’t deal with stupid idiots getting themselves hurt’?” Dick can’t help the bitter tone. Darcy clenches her jaw, not wanting to have this argument in the car in front of her brother.

“One date is not dating _Richard_. Also there were some other statements made in that argument that you should remember too, namely that on top of being a stupid idiot who always got himself hurt you also were a stupid idiot who never bothered to put me first ever. Steve Rogers was nothing but a gentleman the entire time I spoke to him tonight, and when he did put his foot in his mouth he apologized. So yeah I am willing to give him a single date.”

“Do you really think that Steve Rogers, a man from the 1940s is going to be the man for you? Really? How are you going to make that work Darcy? New York is farther than Blüdhaven. You going to have a long distance relationship with the man outta time? You think he’s gonna move from New York to be with you? Are you gonna leave Gotham for him?”

“It is a single date Dick! For fuck’s sake what do you want from me? We didn’t break up just because of distance! The first time was because you lied to me, constantly and about more than just being Robin! And the second time, hell we only got back together because we were in over our heads with Bruce’s disappearing act and Jason’s death! How was _that_ supposed to last when you moved back? Is that what you want me to say Dick?”

The tension’s become suffocating and both Dick and Darcy are glaring at each other. Bruce is considering crawling through to sit in the front with the driver. Instead he very calmly states what he considers to be obvious, “You are both acting like children. And are going too far. Dick, Darcy is allowed to date other men, including other superheroes, regardless of what she might have said before in past arguments. Darcy, perhaps Dick has a point? If you did in fact, say that.”

He gets two angry huffs and both of them cross their arms and face away from him. He shakes in his head with a small smile. In some ways they are so similar, but Bruce knows that now is a very bad time to point that out. When they get home Dick and Darcy both get out of the limo as soon as they stop. Dick slams the door shut behind him but Darcy kept the door open, rolling her eyes as Bruce stepped out. They make their way inside and hear Alfred greeting Dick. Bruce asks after Tim and Alfred replies that he is out on a date but is reachable. Bruce waves him off, realizing the same thing Darcy had already and wanting to give his ward a break.


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve and Darcy go on their first date!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back! I got excited and wanted to post another chapter. Enjoy!

When Darcy got up the next morning she found Alfred in the kitchen fixing breakfast for Dick and Bruce, she starts making pancake batter. He shoos her away while waiting for the omelets to finish. Darcy gives him a little glare but moves away, not wanting to rehash an old argument. The two chat about the party for a while and Darcy finds herself telling Alfred about Steve. After breakfast Darcy reads for a few hours before getting ready for her date.

She decides on a pretty patterned tank top, a pair of mint green shorts, and some gladiator sandals with simple makeup and her hair twisted up in a bun. Just as she finishes, she hears the door bell ring. When she gets downstairs she finds that Bruce and Dick are both standing in the foyer talking to Steve. She can’t help but roll her eyes imagining the cryptic phrases Dick is using.

“Just keep her safe.” Bruce commands as she walks up to them.

“Of course.” Steve’s tone sounds unruffled and he stills has an easy going smile on his face. “Ready to go?”

“Yes! I am very excited,” she says genuinely. The two turn and head outside, where Steve’s bike waits for them.

“I borrowed Buck’s helmet cause I wasn’t sure if you’d have one. You can borrow mine. Stark put little radios in ‘em so we can talk while we’re riding without havin’ to shout.”

Darcy pulls a face and Steve laughing, asks, “What’s the face for?”

“Nothing, that’s just impressive. Has he thought about making it a public thing?”

“Nah. He gives ‘em out to anyone who asks really but I don’t think he’s really thought about it.”

“He should. Ready?”

Steve nods and they get on his bike. The drive to the museum doesn’t take too long, as Darcy directs him on which streets are the best to take, but they fill the space between directions with jokes and getting to know one another. There’s a little bit of a line to get in once they’ve arrived and walked into the museum.

“Do you mind if I get our tickets?” Steve asks when they’re a few people from the front.

“Uh, what?” Darcy asks.

“Well I know that a lot of people split the costs on first dates, and if you wanna do that we can. But I figured that since people know you can pay they ask you to do so more than they would any one else. Plus I got more back pay then I know what to do with. And I did ask you out after all.”

Darcy’s mouth drops open a little and Steve rubs the back of his head self-consciously.

“I mean like I said I’m totally fine just splitting if you wanna but—”

“No! I’m just surprised. But yeah, that would be nice!” Darcy tells him, the beginnings of a smile playing about her lips. Steve steps up and hands the desk attendant a small amount of bills. She hands him his change and a map. He turns around and hands Darcy her ticket with a smile. He then offers her his arm.

“Shall we?” Laughing Darcy takes his elbow and they begin their tour.

Steve is a fantastic tour guide, telling Darcy all sorts of things about each artist and then giving them a minute or two to appreciate the piece before moving on. She finds herself having fun and a few times she knows more about the artists then he does. Once he even pulls a little black book out and writes down the artist’s name.

“What’s that?” she asks, her brow quirking up.

“Its just a little note book I keep of all the things I missed while I was in the ice. When I first woke up it felt like I was constantly adding to it. But after two years or so it’s mostly slowed down. Now I just add things to it when I want to find out about something or someone tells me a pop culture thing that others have neglected to mention.”

Darcy’s silent for a moment before she says quietly, “It’s been four and a half years or so since you were found, right? And the Invasion of New York?”

Steve glances at her, concern lining his face at how serious the mood between them had become. Just as softly he replies, “Yeah. But it hasn’t been so bad. The Avengers have become like family, and getting Bucky back was beyond what I could dream of when I first woke up. I mean yeah, getting Tony to come around was a little difficult but Peggy kicked both of our butts into actually talking to one another. It’s been a hard year without her.”

“I bet; she seemed like an amazing woman. I got to talk to her once—she gave a lecture at my college. Um.”

“Darcy, are you okay?” Steve steers them towards a bench that’s been placed to the side of the exhibit, angling himself so that any one passing by would just see his back. While no one had said anything about the two of them, he wouldn’t be surprised if they had still noticed. If something was wrong with Darcy he didn’t want people to stare at her.

“Yeah, I’m okay. I just…I remember that day so clearly. My brother had disappeared for a year because of some stuff that had happened with his ward—and I wasn’t ready to step into his shoes but Dick and I were trying to fill them together, and we were doing okay, but we needed Bruce and I honestly thought that he was dead or gone forever. But he came back a few days after saying the invasion had cleared up a lot of things for him. And it’s just crazy to me that you had only been found days before and yet you were there to help. You just…you deal with so much, and you’ve already given up so much, why do you keep doing what you do?”

“Its not easy. I lean hard on my team, and we’ve started trying to work with the other super hero teams more. But I can’t just stop, as much as I’d like to sometimes, because Dr. Erskine gave me a gift, and he challenged me to always be a good man. He died, trying to stop bad men who had used his knowledge for evil means. Its how I pay tribute to his memory.”

“You are a good man Steve. So many others would turn away from all this.” Darcy still seems down, lost in some memory or thought process, but he doesn’t think she’s quite ready to open up to him.

“Do you wanna keep going or do you want me to take you home?”

“Let’s keep going please? I’m sorry for all this, I am enjoying myself. Promise.”

Steve stands up and grabs her hands, pulling her up as well. “Don’t worry about it. I’m sure being a major player in any of the big cities that day was a lot. You did good though. I remember we were just starting to talk about how we were going to need to clean up and a Wayne Enterprise team was already there to start the process and give New Yorkers the tools they needed to take back their lives.”

She blushes at the praise and smiles at him. Steve still plays the tour guide, but now they’re talking about other things as well. Around five, they’ve finished going through the museum. The heaviness that had been hanging over their conversation when they had sat down had blown away and both of them had had a lot of fun during the rest of their tour. Before they go through the doors to leave the head of security stops them, and says that members of the press have started hanging around outside the museum.

“But no one’s in the back, if you want to go that way.” The elderly man with the white bushy mustache and dark glasses tells them with a kind smile.

They thank him and head out that way, quickly making their way back to Steve’s bike. They hop on and Steve takes the far way around the museum and guns it. Darcy throws her head back and laughs at the sheer freedom she feels, tightening her arms around Steve’s waist. She’s not sure where he’s going as he’s taking different roads then they took going to the museum but she’s loath to return home anytime soon. Ten minutes later Steve is parking near a deli.

“I kinda need to eat every six hours or so. I was hoping you wouldn’t mind and might even want to get some food with me?” he asks, pulling his helmet off. Darcy follows suit.

“No that sounds great. There’s a park near here, its pretty safe during the day, plus I’m with you. It should be a great place to take our food.”

They enter and order. Darcy picks a simple ham and swiss while Steve orders three different sandwiches, a bag of cookies, and some chips. They walk out fifteen minutes later with their food and Darcy directs Steve to the park. They find a shaded spot under some trees and sit. For a few minutes they just sit, eat, and enjoy each other’s presence, then Steve clears his throat.

“Um, c-can I ask you a question?” he fiddles with his chip bag, feeling like the skinny young man he used to be.

“Of course,” Darcy frowns, as the confident man she had been with for the past few hours vanished before her eyes—Steve still playing with the bag and not meeting her eyes.

“I know he’s your ex, so maybe I should take it with a grain a salt, but Dick said something about this being a pity date?”

Darcy groans and throws herself back onto the grass. She could kill Dick. He would do something like this while he’s home. Steve startles and rises up a little to make sure she’s okay, but Darcy just waves him off.

“Okay, so this is going to seem off topic but which super heroes do you know? Like their secret identities, though you should stick with their super names just in case _I_ don’t know their secret identities.”

“Uh, well all the Avengers, and the Four—though I don’t think they count since pretty much everyone saw them become the Four. A lot of the X-Men. Um, Batman, Nightwing, Superman, Wonder Woman, the Flash, and Aquaman. Which ones do you know?”

“Batman, Nightwing, all the Robins, Batgirl, you, Iron Man, the Four—as in I know them personally, the Storms have gone to some of the science conventions Bruce and I go to with our foundation and they often drag along Reed and Ben—and I’ve met Superman but only as Superman.”

“That’s not as much as I would have thought, considering everything,” Steve admits.

Darcy shrugs from her position on the grass. “I mean, honestly I’ve never made a point _to_ meet the others, and Bruce likes to keep everything as separate as he can. But to answer your question, no this is most definitely _not_a pity date. However, I did use to date Dick, as you know. And when we broke up the second time I might have shouted at him that I couldn’t date a superhero anymore because they’re stupid idiots who can’t help but get themselves hurt. And he’s not pleased that I said yes to a date with you, he took the time last night to make clear all the reasons we shouldn’t work out.”

“Well…he might have a point. Like I said in the museum, I feel a responsibility to use what I’ve been given. Its part of what makes me being here now make sense.” Steve has returned to picking at his food, though suddenly he’s lost most of his appetite. He liked Darcy a lot, especially considering how short a time he had known her. She was beautiful, and kind, and was surprisingly easy for him to talk with. He didn’t want things to be over before they had a chance to begin.

“It’s different. I know how lame that sounds but its true. Dick is…too much like my brother. Both of them were drawn to their way of life by a need of vengance, to right others’ wrongs. You were drawn by a desire to help, to stop those taking advantage of those without power. Plus, with the serum you’d be less likely to miss our dates because you’ve been in a coma for the past six days.” Darcy pauses, searching for words. Steve looks at her again, trying to decide if what she says sounds reasonable, or if this date will end up a wash. “Honestly, one of the biggest problems in my relationship with Dick is that he couldn’t—didn’t, wouldn’t—put me first. Ever. I understand that I can’t always be first, or maybe even most of the time, if I’m dating a hero. But sometimes…sometimes you want to come first. You know? I don’t know Steve. I like you. I’ve had fun with you last night and today. But we do live in two different cities so…I dunno. It’s not a pity date, but is more even possible?”

Despite Darcy still laying down in the grass, and not looking at him, Steve can feel the self-doubt that’s radiating off of her at the moment.

“Darcy…I don’t know how we would make it work, and maybe the best thing is to just let what’s between us play out how it will for now, but there should always be someone who’ll stick by you. I know you are that person for Bruce, and Dick. Their protectiveness over you this morning showed me that. But I’d like to at least be a friend. Someone you can talk to about all this stuff, who you can be honest with.”

Darcy sat up. She had friends, good friends. But she could always use another. Plus this way Steve would stay in her life. She knew she wanted that at least. “Okay. Friends, and we’ll see what else happens between us.”

Dinner seemed to go easier after that. The attraction and sass that they had been relying on before hadn’t left but without the need to figure out how everything would look like, they were both able to relax a little bit more. They hung out at the park for a little bit longer until the sun started to set and Darcy said they should go. Once they were back on the road on Steve’s bike they didn’t talk much, both enjoying the other’s company. When they stopped back at the manor, Darcy got off the bike and attached the helmet to the little bar behind the seat. She bid Steve good-bye as he was making to get off the bike and walk her back to the door. She didn’t want to give Bruce, Dick, or Alfred a chance to embarrass her. Understanding but still wanting to bid her a proper good-bye for the fun time, he grabbed her wrist as she slid by and wrapped her in a tight hug, fitting her right under his chin.

“You have my number sweetheart. Call or text anytime, alright?”

“Yeah, I will. Get home safe okay?” She feels his nod on top of her head, and after a moment she pulls away from him. “Night Steve.”

She lets herself in with her key, and watches Steve drive away before closing the door and locking it. She’s not surprised when she hears Dick’s voice behind her.

“So. How’d the date go?” Darcy rolls her eyes before turning around and flashing a smile at her ex.

“Steve was very nice. I had a good time, but like you said he’s going to New York so I think a date is all its going to be,” Darcy keeps her comment vague, having decided that Dick didn’t need to know anything about her date or that she was going to continue to see him—at least as a friend.

“That’s too bad, I’m sorry,” Dicks says, not sounding it at all. Darcy just shrugs and walks past him, heading back towards her room.

Later that night when Dick, Bruce, and Tim have all gone out on patrol Darcy was scrolling through Twitter when she started to laugh. Mackenzie—one of Darcy’s best friends who was now a PR person in LA and tended to keep an eye out for Darcy out of habit—had messaged her a link and a winking emoji. The link, when Darcy followed it, was from one of the gossip magazines that could be found in grocery stores. It showed her and Steve in the museum, from what looked to be a cell phone picture, and then one of them on his bike as they had left. The headline read that perhaps Darcy was ready to move on to a grown up relationship just as much as Dick. Darcy copied the link and sent it to Dick’s number knowing he wouldn’t have it on him but sent a simple text. _Just so you know. Since I yelled at you for not telling me._

Then, still giggling a little to herself, she texted Steve. _Soooo this is going around...I can tell the next reporter who asks that we met at the Gala and I had wanted to show you our museum since I knew you liked art so much? I don’t want them to intrude on your privacy. Though I’ll admit to you I’m a little pleased cause it’ll bug Dick they turned his own words against him._

She had switched to Tumblr, which she liked cause she could be more anonymous than usual, when she got a text back from Steve. It read, **_If you want, sweetheart. Personally I’m fine with telling them it was a date, but I don’t want it to reflect badly on you. I know how twisty the press can be. Plus I wouldn’t want to put you in harm’s way._**

Darcy taps her bottom lip with her phone a few times thinking, before responding. _Please. I’m in danger just for being a Wayne, its why I’ve carried a Taser since I was in high school. Um we met at the gala, but we’re just friends? This way press can’t actually run away and say we’re gonna be secret married next week and they shouldn’t bug you too much if they find you when you leave your secret Avengers base._

** _Sure thing. Night Doll._ **

She sends him a final good night text and then goes back to Tumblr, feeling a little uneasy but not willing to examine why.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’d love to know what ya’ll are thinking so far? 
> 
> Please be kind though.


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Darcy faces a new chapter in her life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to those reading, kudos-ing, and commenting! I really hope you continue to like the story!

The next three months passed by in a blur for Darcy.

She had kept in touch with both Jane and Steve. While Steve hadn’t come back to Gotham, Jane had for a science convention. Darcy had hung out with her, and Thor, for most of Jane’s free time showing them both around the city. Bruce had joined them a few nights as Thor’s presence had caused crime to drop some—apparently Gotham criminals were terrified of being electrocuted, something Bruce had decided to take advantage of. Though Jane was quickly becoming one of Darcy’s best friends she wasn’t always great at texting. Steve was generally her opposite, texting back almost immediately when he wasn’t busy. They texted one another a lot, especially when he wasn’t on mission. She had also ended up with Bucky’s number after he had stolen Steve’s phone one too many times. He was funny, but she got the impression he wanted to get to know her because she was in Steve’s life now more than anything else. Especially after he shared his favorite picture of his girlfriend.

The agreement that the super hero teams had hashed out had become public knowledge. They stated that the teams would have an organization like the United Nations where they would hold one another accountable; they would also provide access to technology, and support in especially dire cases. There would be funds and investments made so that when cities were damaged in fights the superheroes had some way to make things right. The superheroes that felt comfortable with it could provide information, such at their other identities that would be publically available. Each government could appoint an ambassador. Currently they were looking for a city that would be willing to be the home of this organization, but a lot of cities were still waiting to see how public opinion went. Bruce had sought her opinion at home on the best way to handle it. Obviously he personally wanted to support them, and he was leaning towards having the company support it as well but he didn’t want to give away his own identity. Darcy had suggested that they wait a little bit for companies other than ones with superheroes to make a stance, and to ask the board to take a vote.

Bruce and the other board members had been pressing her to accept a position on the board but she wasn’t ready to move up just yet, instead she had taken on some of their more…troublesome accounts, putting her political science and business degrees to good use. It had only made the board more eager to have her join their number, pleased with her performance and worried that perhaps she was considering leaving the company. Bruce wanted to put her on the board and totally in control of the company’s image, knowing that Darcy would keep the company moving in a direction their parents wanted—so many of their friends remarked on how Darcy was like their parents. Darcy wasn’t against that, especially in the long term, she just felt like she lacked enough experience to join them right now. They had seemed mollified when she finally explained _why_ she was putting them off and promised to find ways to get her that experience.

Which was why she had been called into the board room today.

“Darcy do you remember the gala a few months ago?” Bruce started. Darcy looked at him a little confused, unsure of where he was going with this.

“Yes, of course.”

“Well, the board is a little concerned about how our partnership with Stark will look with all of the superhero stuff that’s been in the news lately, and seeing how we want you to handle our image anyways we thought this would be a great opportunity for you to work with Ms. Potts on how to make both our companies look good right now. So we’re transferring you to New York for the foreseeable future.”

“Oh! Ah, of course. Starting when?”

“We’ll give you a three weeks to find a place, move, and get settled in.”

Darcy sits in for the rest of the meeting, her mind moving a mile a minute trying to figure out how she is going to do everything in three weeks. At the end of the meeting Bruce asks Darcy to stay for a minute.

“So I had Alfred start looking at places that would be good for you to stay. Pepper has offered an apartment at the Tower. Personally I think you should live there. However we do own an apartment that we keep to stay in whenever someone on the board is in New York. There’s also a few apartments that Alfred thinks are your style that you’re welcome to look at as well.”

Darcy takes the tablet Bruce offers, flicking through each apartment selected. She purses her lips at one, shakes her head no on a few others, and looks at one thoughtfully. Finally she looks up at her brother. “Honestly maybe we should buy all of them. We can rent the ones I don’t use to people in the New York office, or to people who need affordable housing. I want to stay in this one”—she shows him one that was fairly simple—“which I think is the Stark Tower one? But I want to say I’m in any of the others that way press doesn’t hound me while I’m in New York. I’ll stop by there and even stay a night or two every once in a while but if they know we have it they’ll go there first.”

Bruce nods and tells her they’ll make the arrangements. She thanks him and then leaves. She finishes what she needed to get done and then starts to prepare her department for her departure. Darcy had been training her VP for the past few months so she imagines it’ll be a fairly easy transition—at least as much as can be expected. She knows that with the way Pepper works the Stark apartment is already ready for her so as soon as everything is packed she’s planning on leaving so she can get settled in her new city. She’ll work remotely for a week but only in that she’ll be available for her replacement in case she needs help.

By the end of the week though Darcy is in New York. She gets in to the city kinda late so instead of heading to Avengers Tower she just goes to the Wayne Enterprises apartment. Her stuff isn’t arriving until tomorrow anyways, so she’s not worried about it.

~~

She spends the first full day exploring the city until she has to meet with Pepper, dressed for comfort. Wearing a beanie over her curly hair for one of the first brisk fall days and a long sleeved dark blue shirt and dark jeans she visits several coffee shops as well as vintage stores and one farmer’s market, enjoying the anonymity of a new city. When its time to meet Pepper she heads to the tower feeling like she’s starting to get the hang of things. Security lets her know which elevator to use. Once inside the elevator moves on its own accord, opening on a floor that Darcy only knows was up with Pepper waiting outside the doors. Darcy leaves the elevator and goes to stand by the other woman.

“Thank you Friday. Hello Miss Wayne.”

“You’re welcome Ms. Potts,” a voice chimes, sounding like it came from the ceiling.

“Hi, Ms. Potts! Its nice to see you again,” Darcy says, wondering if maybe she was under dressed.

“It’s nice to see you too. Have you had a good day so far?” the older woman asked warmly. Darcy nodded. “Oh good. First things first, Friday is the AI that runs our building, she’s throughout the whole building but only accessible to certain people. We try to keep that number fairly low, but Tony thought that you should have access to her, since you’ll be living and working here. Anything you need just ask. I had her bring you to your floor, which is the 52nd. It’s just you on this floor; we normally keep it empty as a sort of buffer between the floors we rent out and the Avengers apartments. But since you are higher profile than most of our renters we decided the more privacy we can give you the better. You’ll have access to the Avengers’ common spaces as well—”

“Oh no, Ms. Potts, I don’t want that. I know that most of them are…well wherever their base is, but still they don’t need a civilian that they don’t know just wandering around.”

“You don’t have to use it if you don’t want to but Bruce asked that we include it in case there was an emergency and Tony and I both agreed Darcy.”

“Pepper,” the twenty-seven year old cracks and lets a little whine creep in her voice, feeling very managed.

“Darcy. You have to agree it makes sense. We don’t have safe rooms on floors below the Avenger levels because we want to people to leave generally in case of an attack, but for you knowing where these are is a good idea. So we are going to look through them now. This will also allow the movers to bring up your things.”

Pepper then very firmly guides the younger woman to the door of her apartment and has her scan in her biometrics, explaining that since you couldn’t lose the key it was the preferred method in the tower. She also explains to Darcy that if she desires she can let Friday know other people Darcy wants to have access to her apartment, as well as activate privacy modes.

Then taking no argument they head back into the elevator and again go up. Darcy receives very thorough knowledge of where the hiding places are on the five levels that belong to the Avengers. Pepper lets her know the last floor above this one was the penthouse where she lived with Tony when they were both in the city. She showed Darcy the middle floor, which was all common spaces. A kitchen led into a large but cozy living room. Nearby through a door was a gaming space with both video games but also table games like pool and foosball. There also was a gym that had both a pool and a ballet/yoga studio. It was very nice Darcy admitted to herself, though she was careful to say nothing too admiring to Pepper, sure now that it would be how Darcy found herself being invited to team events that she had no business going anywhere near. Pepper also took the time to tell her the floor that Jane worked on when Darcy asked. She looked ready to tell her which floor Jane lived on too, but Darcy moved on by asking another question. If Jane wanted Darcy to know where she lived, then Darcy would get that information from her friend when she was ready to share.

The tour was over shortly after. Leaning against her door, Darcy lets out a breath. She knew Pepper meant well, her brother too for all that he had suggested these safety measures. Still, not all of the Avengers had chosen to share their civilian identities with the public. Just because she was related to a super hero didn’t mean she deserved to be privy to that information. She would just have to stay off their floors as much as possible.

Several hours later, needing a break from unpacking Darcy leaves to get dinner. Afterwards she stops at a bodega to get some basic foodstuffs for her apartment and even gets some ice cream as a treat for successfully managing New York so far. Another hour and half later as she stands in front of the security desk _still_ arguing that **yes** she does live here she’s starting to feel that maybe her now soupy ice cream was being optimistic.

“Ma’m, please. We don’t have record of you even being in this building before. Not your biometrics, your name. We don’t even have you on camera. You don’t live in this building.” The security guard has moved on from bored with the argument to mad that its continuing this long. “Further, if you don’t vacate the building I am going to call the police.”

“Ohmygod! Its Avengers-Stark Tower. I can’t possibly forget moving in here! I came in through this very entrance not even twelve hours ago! Call Ms. Potts. She’ll clear everything up.” Darcy crosses her arms, anger getting the better of her. Her groceries sit on the ground in their bags forgotten.

“I’m calling the police now ma’m. I don’t call the likes of Ms. Potts for the likes of someone like you.”

“Someone like me?” Darcy bites her lip in frustration. She had already told this meathead that she was Darcy Wayne and that she was working with Ms. Potts but the security guard had merely responded that he was Freddie Mercury.

“Yes. Clearly upset, not making any sense, and possibly unstable.”

“Darcy?” a new, but familiar, voice joins their argument coming from behind her. She spins around and sees Steve flanked by Bucky, Sam, and another blond person who Darcy is willing to guess is Hawkeye.

“Steve!” Darcy greets him, very happy to see a friendly face.

“What’s going on?”

“Well you know how I texted you how I had a surprise for you this week?” Steve nods, still looking a little confused. “Well the surprise is that work sent me here to work with Ms. Potts on public perception for a while. Pepper offered to let me stay at the tower while I’m here. I wasn’t sure if you were going to be in town and I didn’t want to make you feel like you had to be here so I was just going to tell you once I got settled in. But _my friend_ over here is saying that I’m not in the system and won’t let me up, but I know I am. Pepper and Friday set me up personally around four!”

Steve exchanges glances with the guys he came in with. Bucky’s glowering at the guard, while the mystery blond is staring at her pretty hard but Darcy stays focused on Steve. Finally Steve makes a decision. He grabs Darcy’s groceries, puts an arm around her shoulder and marches past the security guard.

“Sir! She is not allowed in the building!”

“But she’s my guest.”

“Mine too.” Bucky adds, his voice a growl.

“You wouldn’t stop a guest of Captain America and the Winter Soldier would you?” Sam asks wryly.

“Stark has told us we’re allowed to have anyone as our guest, whenever we’d like.” Maybe Hawkeye finally adds.

The security guard looks like he still wants to argue but he lets them pass. When they get in the elevator the unknown blond speaks first.

“Friday, who is in the elevator right now?”

“Captain Rogers, Senior Airman Wilson, Sargent Barnes, Miss Wayne, and yourself Agent Barton,” the AI responds primly.

“Friday, scan the current on duty security guards. Look for any guards who’s scans don’t match their badges. Let us know ASAP, and Tony as well. Let’s get Darcy back to her floor. ” Barnes orders.

“I’m sorry Miss Wayne, I just wanted to make sure you were recognized by Friday. I’m Clint Barton.” The man in question introduces himself, friendly enough now that Friday had confirmed her identity. He was confident that the AI got it right, as Tony had tested it with the disguise screens Tasha had used during the mess at the Triskelion and had been recognized right away.

“Darcy please,” requests Darcy as she shakes the man’s hand. The elevator dings and Bucky and Steve usher her off. After a quick good-bye Sam and Clint go up to the penthouse to figure out why she hadn’t been allowed up.

Bucky puts himself in front of Darcy and Steve and allows Darcy to open the door, only to slip inside and slam the door in her face.

“Steve!” She looks up at the blond man, clearly frustrated. “This isn’t necessary. No one even knows I’m here!”

“Darce, please just humor us. You never should have been stopped by security once Friday had your biometrics—she dings security’s computers to let them know to let you pass. It allows the people who live here to go in and out without being stopped all the time. Something just doesn’t seem right.”

Darcy sighs but doesn’t make a move to follow Bucky inside. Steve smiles at her brightly and she finds herself responding even though a small part of her wants to stay irritated.

“So you were going to surprise me?” Steve asks, clearly wanting to ignore the part where Darcy might be in danger.

“Yeah. I figured you probably don’t get happy surprises very often so I was gonna try at least.”

“Thanks. You’re right I don’t. Its good to see you by the way.” Steve nudges her a little bit, trying to lighten the mood.

“I thought I was going to avoid this by being here.”

“I know. Want a hug?” Darcy nods and Steve opens his arms. Darcy’s head thunks unto his chest and he tightens his arms around her.

Shortly after the door to her apartment opens, Darcy shifts her head to look at Bucky but doesn’t make to leave Steve’s arms.

“It’s clean. Thanks for humoring us. Wouldn’t want ya getting snatched.”

“Thank you Bucky. I appreciate the concern. And that you guys came in when you did so that I at the very least didn’t get the cops called on me on my second night in New York.”

“Nah, gotta make it to the third night at least,” Steve jokes. Then he moves away to pick up her bags and heads inside, leaving Darcy to follow behind as she lets him know she can carry her own bags and waving him off when he starts to pull things from the bags.

“Its no problem Darcy. I’m happy to help. Um-unless you were hoping to just relax for the rest of the night and now I’ve just barged in—”

“Steve!” Darcy interrupts with a laugh. She starts to put away all her food as Steve stands against the wall, hands behind his back, watching her figure out where she wanted things. She isn’t quite sure where Bucky went, but he seems to have vanished for the time being. “Its fine. My plans for the night were originally to finish unpacking, and stuff my face with ice cream. But my ice cream has turned to soup so that’s probably a bust. Got any ideas?”

“Well if you want something low-key, I have non-soup ice cream in my apartment? And popcorn and movies?”

Darcy squints suspiciously at him, as she puts away the last few items. “What kind of movies? Like old movies?”

Steve rubs the back of his head, not sure what the right answer is. “Uh-well I have Netflix, and a variety of movies. Some are older, but there are other ones that people suggested to me that I really liked. I also have a Blu-ray player so we could watch anything you want?”

Darcy nods, and pulls him along by his hand. She deposits him in the living room while she digs through some boxes pulling out a large fuzzy blanket, and a selection of movies. “We’ll start with Netflix, these are just in case we don’t like anything there. And I’m sure you have blankets, but they probably aren’t specifically for movies.”

Steve shrugs knowing that she has a point. Then he leads the way back to his apartment up a few floors. He hands Darcy the remote while he pops the popcorn. Steve also grabs them a few sodas to complete the movie experience. When he returns to his living room Darcy has picked the corner piece of his sectional, digging into the extra space. She’s left enough room for him to slide in, put his feet up on the ottoman, and balance the snacks between them. She flips through the suggestions and debates the merits of each one. After a while they decide on _Anastasia, _as Steve hadn’t seen it yet and it was one of Darcy’s favorites.

“Ya know…when I was little, I _really_ wanted Anastasia’s blue dress. Alfred always stopped me from finding a way to get one. But when Junior prom came around and I couldn’t find the right dress he came through. It was a dream of a dress.” Darcy mentions when they get to the part where the heroes spend the night at the opera.

“That was kind of him.”

“Yeah, that’s Alfred. He’s always looking out for Bruce and I. He’s a great dad substitute, which is all he’ll let me call him for all that I’ve always felt like he might as well _be_ my dad. I did try to get him to adopt me once.”

“What happened?” Steve wonders, though he admits to himself he can’t really see Darcy as anything other than a Wayne—the same way he wouldn’t be able to see Tony as anything besides a Stark, for all that Jarvis and Peggy had helped raise him.

“Well….I guess the board at that time was trying to block Bruce and I from being able to inherit the company, and Alfred said that him adopting me would only aid them and that he knew Bruce and I would be able to do more good with a substitute dad and the Wayne fortune. And I could see his point, especially in Gotham. Plus, its not like there’s much actual difference. Just words. I mean there was some legal stuff in the way too…but I’ve been working my way around that for the past twenty years.”

“That’s like me and Bucky. We aren’t actually brothers but that doesn’t mean a thing. Not to him or me.”

“Exactly,” Darcy says firmly, patting Steve’s hand before snuggling in further next to him, and grabbing some more popcorn from the bowl. When the movie ends, Darcy doesn’t want to leave and Steve doesn’t want the night to be over so he suggests another movie. This time they watch a newer movie called _Kubo and the Two Strings, _something Steve suggests and Darcy agrees to excitedly, admitting she hadn’t had the chance to see it either.

When the movie is over, and it’s later than Darcy had been intending to stay up, she sighs but makes to get up—knowing that she needs to leave. Steve walks her to the door and bids her good-bye. Darcy gets ready for bed, she’s overall pretty happy with how her first day in her new home went.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Moving always takes up so much energy, a treat of some kind is always necessary. What do you all like to treat yourself with?


	4. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Darcy's first day in the office!

The next morning when Darcy heads into the office five floors down that Pepper had devoted to Darcy’s use, she sees a young woman looking to be about eighteen maybe nineteen years old, presumably waiting for her.

“Can I help you?” Darcy asks cautiously.

“Actually, I am here to help you. My name’s Michelle Jones, or MJ, whichever you’d like. I’m an intern with Stark Industries,” the girl shows Darcy her badge before continuing, “and prior to my reassignment to you I was helping to assist Ms. Potts. I’m-”

“Which do _you_ prefer?” Darcy asks leaning against the doorway to the outer office.

“Uh…excuse me?”

“Which name do you prefer? You said whichever I like. But its not about what I like, its your name and I’d like for you to be comfortable with what I’m calling you.”

“Oh…um MJ please Miss Wayne.”

“Certainly. In return I’d like for you to call me Darcy. I suppose there are certain situations where Miss Wayne is more appropriate, and in those moments I’ll address you as Miss Jones as well. Now I have just a few more questions. First who reassigned you?”

“Ms. Potts did.”

“Oh good. I would have hated to find out it was someone trying to promote themselves and lose you to Ms. Potts. Are you okay with this transfer? Obviously your internship is with Stark Industries and not Wayne Enterprises so if you really want Stark Industries work I’m sure we can work something out.”

“Yes, I’m okay with it. Though so far I’ll admit you aren’t really what I expected…”

“Strangely enough I’ve been told that before.” Darcy laughs a little at herself before she powers on. “Now, what we are going to do will be hard. We are working towards shaping public opinion. I do expect you to work hard, and to give me your best. However, that doesn’t mean that I want this to take over your life. If you have family commitments, or school stuff, or just even need a day off to take a break I expect you’ll ask for it. As for the dress code, as you can see by my jeans I’m not a big fan of formal wear. Ninety-five percent of the time you can wear whatever you’d like. Be as fancy or as casual as you want. The five percent of the time where I’ll need you to dress a certain way I’ll be sure to let you know beforehand. If its for something really fancy like a gala, I will provide you with some options to pick from because honestly, this _is_ an internship, and I really don’t think you need to be spending money on a gala dress your boss is making you go to. Does that sound agreeable or should I send you back to Stark Industries?”

“That sounds…great. Are you sure though? Cause it also sounds crazy.”

“I get that. But Ms. Potts knows what I am doing and how important it is to both our companies in the long run. If she’s the one who decided you would be the best to help me, then I’m going to believe her. That means making sure you’re going to want to stay.” Darcy stops talking to really look at MJ. She looked very sharp in a maroon blouse and yellow skirt, with her hair pulled back. Darcy had no doubt that she was also smart and quick on her feet—she’d have to be to have worked with Pepper for any amount of time. Deciding that ultimately this was up to MJ, Darcy shrugged and headed into her personal office.

Sitting down, Darcy sets about starting up the laptop she pulled from her bag, calling out, “MJ, I need you to pull everything having to do with superheroes. Who they are, what they do, the tech they use, what companies that tech belongs to, the patents for said tech, everything we have on the villains they face, their social media, social media’s response to superheroes—both before and after major attacks—traditional media’s response, all drafts of current legislation regarding the supers. Anything and everything.”

The young woman comes to stand in Darcy’s doorway, squaring her shoulders before asking, “Miss Wayne…you’re not trying to shape public opinion about the supers in the way Jonah Jameson is…are you? The supers…look they might not have everything figured out—or do everything right all the time—but at least they’re trying.”

Something about her tone makes Darcy look up and study MJ again. While before Darcy had seen the confused, but eager intern who was looking for some way into the world that corporations like Stark Industries and Wayne Enterprises embodied. Now she saw a steel-spined activist ready to take a stand against a possible injustice. Knowing now was not the time to joke Darcy measures her words carefully.

“No, I’m not trying to shape public opinion through diatribes. And I certainly don’t feel the same way about super heroes that Jonah Jameson does. However, public opinions about super heroes and their actions are out there and they are being formed. Now what they do is even being legislated over. In legislation, public opinion does have its place. If there is no alternative to Jameson, and the supers are left to handle it themselves on forums that they may have little to no understanding of—especially in the kinds of numbers I am talking about that make up the public—then I do not see how anyone can expect things to go in favor of the supers or the people they are trying to protect.

“I’m not a lawyer MJ, I can’t argue with the politicians about the legislation they’re making. But I am very good at public relations. I am good with various social media formats and having a large following. And most importantly how to get that following to make waves. If I can do that for the superheroes—perhaps I can get some lawyers on their sides.”

“But…why do you care about helping them? I don’t see how that’s good for Wayne Enterprises?”

“Wayne Enterprises has entered into a very long and complex, formal partnership with Stark Industries. Stark Industries is currently most known for its former CEO and current superhero Tony Stark. If Stark gets bad press, so does his company, and so does mine. Also, I don’t know what tech the supers are using. If any of it belongs to Stark Industries, Wayne Enterprises, or Queen Consolidated—another business partner—we are all liable to lawsuits. Its better to figure it out now than later.”

“Okay. I’ll stay. You said you wanted _everything_ relating to supers?” At Darcy’s nod, MJ sighs, “This is gonna take a while. I’ll get started. I should be able to pull some stuff for you to get started on for a few hours while I go to the archives to get more stuff. Stark is great at saving everything so we should have lots to work with.”

MJ has dropped off the first batch of documents and video that she’s been able to pull and gone off to get more when a knock sounds on the side of her door. Startled Darcy looks up to see a woman of medium height and fiery red hair standing with a polite smile.

“Hello, can I help you?” Darcy asks, a little wary of unknown visitors after last night’s encounter with security.

“Hi! Are you Miss Wayne? I’ve been sent by Ms. Potts to be your personal assistant. My name is Natalie Rushman.” The woman, a few years older than Darcy answers brightly, but as she lacks the same badge as MJ her answer raises Darcy’s suspicions.

“I see. Well thank you for coming over Ms. Rushman I do appreciate it but I’m afraid I will not need an assistant.”

“Miss Wayne I really must insist—”

Palming her Taser under her desk, Darcy hardens her tone cutting off the stranger, “No thank you. I already have an assistant and do not need another. If you do not leave I will call security.”

The woman before Darcy seems to transform in a matter of minutes, standing straighter and her facial expression totally changing, as well as her voice the next time she speaks. “Very well. I can see the same identity that worked on Tony won’t work on you. The truth then. My name is Natasha Romanoff, and you may know me as the Black Widow. Steve asked me to keep an eye on you while we figure out what happened with security last night. I thought it’d be easier if you didn’t know.”

After staring at this stranger for a moment Darcy grabs her phone and dials Steve from her contact list. Steve answers after the second ring.

“Hi Darcy! What’s up?”

“Did you send someone named Natasha Romanoff to keep an eye on me? I mean she does look like the Black Widow, but um I guess I just…thought I’d…verify.”

Steve chuckles a little, “I asked her to introduce herself and see if she thought you’d need someone around after the security issue last night. I take it that she did it in her own unique way and wasn’t entirely forthcoming at the beginning? That’s just Nat. She’s great to have in your corner though.”

“Oh, okay. Thanks I’ll talk to you later,” Darcy hangs up the phone and then looks back at the spy leaning in her doorway. “I’d say I’m sorry for second guessing you, but I’m really not. I’ve had experience with treachery and believe its better to double check.”

Natasha nods approvingly, and after a minute of Darcy moving on with her work sits at one of the extra desks that neither Darcy nor MJ are using.

“If you could come up with a list of both local and national reporters and networks that are friendly to you and the other superheroes that would be helpful. And then you could also stay and watch out for me, since Steve asked,” Darcy says, trying to make sure her tone is free of the small amount of irritation she feels at being managed no matter that Steve did have a point.

“I’d be happy to help you if that means I can stay. Is there a particular reason you’re asking? Reporters who do us favors? I’m more able to help if I know what exactly we are looking for.”

“Well, I’m sure you already know at least a little because you do excel at information gathering but I am working with Ms. Potts on shaping public opinion on super heroes, especially as they pertain to our two companies. Wayne Enterprises is also partnering with Stark Industries on their Stark Expo and I’m sure my brother will shove that onto my plate as well since I’m here in New York, but that is quite a while from now so I’m not too worried about that for right now. What I’m looking for from you is people or networks who have stories that are either in favor or netural to the superheroes. Those who are can continue to go to you for their stories. Those who are like Jonah Jameson, well they can deal with me and the PR staff I’m going to hire specifically for this. If you have any ideas for that as well I’d be interested in looking over your list. Otherwise I have a particular person in mind.”

Natasha nods and the two return to work. The only interruption coming when MJ arrives with more documents she had pulled. She paused for a minute looking to her new boss who introduced the two in a tone that spoke of boredom, “Natasha, MJ. MJ, Natasha. Don’t listen if she tells you its Natalie. She’s helping.”

By the end of the day the trio of women had made a great start and Darcy had laid out where she wanted them to go next, extending an invitation for Natasha to join them whenever she liked and had the time to do so. A young man also wearing a Stark Industries Internship badge waits at the door for MJ.

“Oh um, Miss Wayne this is my boyfriend Peter Parker. Peter this is my new boss Darcy Wayne.”

Darcy shakes the teenagers hand, giving him a smile, noticing that he’s looking at MJ a little panicked.

“It’s nice to meet you Miss Wayne. MJ really likes some of the things Wayne Enterprises is doing. I work with Mr. Stark so nothing we do overlaps. He’s said its okay that we’re dating. It doesn’t break any rules or anything,” he looks very nervous and MJ looks like she’s stopping herself from face palming.

Darcy stops herself from chuckling before extracting her hand and telling the couple, “If Tony says its fine, then I’m sure it is. Peter I really don’t care that you two are interning at the same company especially when I’m very happy with the work MJ is doing with me right now. If she was aware of this internship because you mentioned it then I am grateful to you for doing so. I’m sure that she was able to achieve this internship through her own merit though and I’m not worried about favoritism if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“He means well Darcy. He’s just…Peter about it all though. Thank you for everything today. I’ll see you tomorrow. Goodnight!” MJ tosses over her shoulder, her cheeks pink with embarrassment as she pulls Peter away from one of her heroes.

Darcy shakes her head and walks towards the elevator texting Jane setting up a girls’ night for the upcoming weekend. She also answers the texts Steve had sent her throughout the day about how things were going with Natasha. Apparently they had found out that the guard was lying to Darcy hoping to make her desperate enough to pay him off. He had been fired and they were sure she should have no more problems. Still when she gets into her rooms, she still uses the device that Luscious gave her to check for bugs and other threats in her apartment. When it comes back clear she proceeds and finishes unpacking a few more of the rooms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well what are we thinking all? 
> 
> Also ya girl's applying to graduate school so send me some good vibes. I'm working on essays this week so if I don't update every day that is why.


	5. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Darcy goes on her first New York Date

The next month passed quickly, but Darcy felt they were making good progress. She had hired Jennifer Walters on Natasha’s recommendation, she was a lawyer who took no nonsense from her opponents and could handily dispatch any journalist who felt like using the superheroes as a springboard for their careers. She had also hired Dinah “Laurel” Lance, a friend of her brother’s, who had specialized in PR for the past fifteen years, seven of which were for Queen Consolidated. Darcy secretly held the opinion that both Natasha and Bruce were surrounding her with even more supers to act as protection, but neither Jennifer nor Laurel had admitted to anything so Darcy kept her suspicions to herself. Besides, if anyone had stake in a superhero registration act it was the supers themselves.

Still some things never changed and no matter where she lived people were always looking to socialize with a Wayne. Darcy had fielded multiple invitations, begging off because she had just moved to the city. However people were no longer accepting that excuse and so tonight she was attending a fundraising gala held at the Metropolitan. She had thought about asking Steve if he wanted to go with but had chickened out. Instead Thor and Jane were coming with her and she was looking forward to the evening anyways.

It was a fun night, and Darcy spent much of the party talking to a young man named Darren. He was kind and funny, and also from a family who’s attention was much sought after. She felt like she was talking to one of her friends from home. Before Jane and Thor took her home he asked her out on a lunch date that Saturday which she accepted with excitement.

The date however did not go as well as the party had. At the party Darren had been an engaging conversationalist and Darcy was a part of the conversation. At their date…Darren had a lot more to say and Darcy was finding it harder to find an opening.

“I mean, take these so called super heroes for instance,” he tells her waving his hand in the air as if to accentuate his point, “They fight all these costumed criminals. That only serves to create more of the deranged idiots. Which makes more vigilantes, which creates more violence which ends with more property damage and more galas like the one we attended where they beg _us_ for money to fix problems we didn’t even make.”

Darcy has to fight to keep her face composed and to not punch her date. Instead she twists her napkin in her fist, she gets up to use the restroom and she looks out the window to see multiple paparazzi photographers. Once inside the restroom she calls Steve.

“Steve, are you busy right now?” she asks, trying to keep the whine out of her voice.

“Nah. Sam and I were just watching some baseball. What’s up sweetheart?”

“Can you come pick me up? I thought I was going on a date, instead I’m at a set up for this dick weasel to gain social capital on being the first person to bag Darcy Wayne in New York. He’s awful, completely different from this persona he created at the gala. He called paps Steve, I can’t leave by myself they’ll follow me.”

At the tower, Steve sits up and gestures for Sam to turn down the volume. It had sounded for a second like Darcy was holding back tears. “I’m on my way. Darcy, are you alright? Obviously what he did is not okay, but did he do anything else?”

“Just made me feel like I’m a cardboard cut out for all that he’s allowed me to speak. I have to go back out but text me when you get here please?” Darcy walks out of the stall and checks her makeup while she waits for Steve’s answer. She tells him where she’s at, hangs up, and squares her shoulders before walking back out the door. Darren picks right back up where he’d left off and Darcy isn’t able to stop her eyes from rolling this time. About fifteen minutes later her phone dings with a text, she looks down and sees it from Steve. Darren looks like he’s gearing up to honestly reprimand her—a grown ass woman—and Darcy cannot take it anymore.

“Look Darren, you were nice at the party, I thought-I truly thought that you were kind. That you could be a potential friend or maybe even more. But today has proven that in reality, when you are away from people that _you_believe to actually matter you are an ass hat. You dominate the conversation, you ordered for me, you were about to _lecture_ me. And, and, you called the paps,” she pauses for one second to see if the news that paparazzi was here surprised him. His expression didn’t change at all and Darcy shook her head disgusted. “By the way, the costumed criminals came first. Maybe not everywhere but in Gotham they came first. And they terrorized the city and all of the people who lived there. You may not like the vigilantes and no one is asking you to, but a lot of them actually try to help the people they fight. Which is more than we can say for the current systems that neglect these people to the point where they are driven to costumed criminality in the first place.

“And by the way, you already told me that you personally use your family’s money to flip the destroyed areas that have lowered in property value. So you do benefit from the violence, and I doubt that you do anything to try to improve the life situations that drive people into a life of crime. Even if that wasn’t the case and all you had was your family’s money, your family has more money than you could spend in your entire lives combined. And yes, my family does too but at least we’re doing things with it and donating to any worthy cause. I hope you figure this all out for yourself one day Darren, but I will not be there to see it because this is the end of my time that you get to waste. Goodbye.”

She leaves without looking back, going through the kitchen and finding Steve waiting on his bike. At least two photographers had noticed her telling Darren off and had sneaked to the back of the building waiting for Darcy. As she and Steve sped off they got a good couple of photos that they knew would sell, and sell well.

“Thanks for rescuing me Steve,” Darcy says through the helmet microphone, squeezing her arms around his waist.

When they stop at the light he pats her hand and says, “You were able to rescue yourself Darce, I’m just your chariot. Was he really that bad?”

“Yes. God Steve, he just…he used me. I thought I had made a friend but he just wanted to, to gain social capital. I’m sorry.”

“For what? You don’t have anything to be sorry for.”

Silence reigns between them for a moment as the sounds of the city and the motorcycle roar around them. “For not inviting you to the gala Steve. I was going to. But I chickened out. I like you Steve, and it was easier in Gotham to ignore that when we were apart and we agreed to allow our friendship room to grow. Now I’m unsure, about everything. About if you like me back, if I should flirt with you or leave you alone, if our friendship will suffer from us trying, or if we should—”

“Darcy!” Steve laughs and pats her hand again, “I do like you back. We can try a date or we can wait if you’d like. I can’t say I’m any good at flirting back but I like when you flirt with me, between you and me I like the attention from you. And I think our friendship will be fine if we don’t work out, we had that between us first so it’ll be there still building as long as we keep building that with the romance.”

Darcy can’t help but smile and she tucks her face into Steve’s back. At their next stop she reaches over and kisses his cheek.

About thirty minutes later after getting hotdogs at the nearest corner stand they’ve made it to a little secluded park where they can sit and talk further. Darcy finds out that the park they’re in was one that Steve and Bucky had played in when they were little. They walk around the neighborhood with Steve telling Darcy all sorts of stories. They’re walking back when Darcy shares some of her own stories.

“Bruce went to boarding school, he said that the Gotham schools were too simple for him. And it was an option for me too, but Alfred and I both decided that it would be better for me to go to school in Gotham. I went to the public school and it just stopped being a big deal that I was a Wayne. Sure, I could help pay for things but I was just Darcy. People liked me for me or they didn’t. At least until high school prom when my friends and I ended up on a magazine cover tipsy. Things became more complicated again after that but I’ve managed.”

They’ve made it back to the bike now and Steve helps Darcy with her helmet, telling her he’ll have to get her own helmet now. She smiles at him and he can’t help himself. He ducks down cradling her face careful, ever so careful before pressing his lips to hers. She hums and presses up deepening the kiss. After a moment they separate and get on the bike heading back for home. Steve’s loathe to let her go so he invites her to finish watching the game with Sam, Bucky, and Nat. She agrees after saying she’ll need to stop at her apartment first and change into more comfortable clothes. He waits for her in her living room, already holding the blanket she had brought up last time. When she joins him she presses a kiss to his lips this time.

“Steve?”

“Hmm?”

“When can we go on our first real date?”

“Well, the Justice League is working on something right now, and Tony thinks we’re going to have to go help tomorrow. And we’ll probably be a bit. I’d say probably Saturday or Sunday?”

“Let’s do Saturday with a backup of Sunday?” Darcy asks. Steve nods and slips his hand around hers and they head up to Sam’s apartment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the kind comments so far, I greatly appreciate them! I hope you all are still enjoying it!


	6. Chapter Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A short look into someone else's day

Steve sat for the first time all day, still in his uniform and sweaty with his cowl pushed back. The Avengers had indeed been called in to help the Justice League face the villains that had joined together in something called the “Injustice League.” They had managed to keep most of the damage to several key areas rather than the whole of the world as their enemies had intended. It had been a long few days, and sleep had been in short supply. Privacy in even shorter supply. Still the two teams had gotten along well, egos had been kept in check and partnerships were even able to form some between the teams. Debrief was being handled by the main members of the League, Tony, and Natasha as they had been the ones issuing orders to everyone else. Steve was glad to leave them to it. He was dragged into too many meetings for his liking anyways.

Just as he’s starting to drift into a sort of sleep, he hears someone coming up to him. He cracks an eye open and is startled to realize that the someone is already next to him. A young man looking to be just around thirty, with long, dark hair and dressed in a well fitting black and blue suit stood over him. The two had talked before in Gotham at Wayne manor but hadn’t interacted in uniform or since Darcy had moved to New York. Steve sits up straight and crooks an eyebrow, curious about what Nightwing wants.

“Stay away from Darcy.” Dick Grayson orders, his voice rough. Steve stands up, not liking how the younger man is trying to loom over him. “I saw the magazine cover. She doesn’t like that sort of attention so if you’re looking for it, find some other heiress to play around with.”

“Darcy texted me. She was on a date with some high society jackass. _He _called the press. Besides, you don’t get to decide who she spends her time with anymore Grayson. Haven’t for a while.”

“Just because we aren’t dating, doesn’t mean I don’t care for her.”

“I never said you didn’t.”

“If you care for her, you’ll stay away. She deserves someone who can put her first. Who will put her first. Always. Men like us—we can’t do that.” Dick crosses his arms. He had always idolized Captain America and it was weird warning him away from someone he loved. Darcy had ended their relationship years ago, and though he still loved her and always would he had recently, quietly, started dating Barbara Gordon and they had a good thing. But then she understood his lifestyle, lived it. Darcy had always, _always_ stayed away from it. It wasn’t fair to make her play second fiddle. He would watch out for her, in what ways he could. Plus Darcy had already told him she didn't see herself dating Steve-though that had been months ago now. 

“Grayson…” Steve sighed. He knew that Darcy didn’t want her love life discussed with her ex, but he wouldn’t put it past Dick to let Bruce know his opinion and then only Alfred would be on his side in his attempts to woo Darcy. “Look. I’m not going to explain everything to you, because Darcy and I haven’t had this conversation fully yet and she deserves to know this first. But suffice to say that being frozen for seventy years had quite the effect on my priorities. I’m not sure that you can accurately say ‘men like us’ because besides the fact that we are both here and fight the same people, I don’t know that we do this for the same reasons.”

Steve gets up, intending to find Bucky but instead he finds himself pulling out his phone and messaging Darcy.

**I think I just got the shovel talk?**

_Oh no. Bruce?_

**No. Dick.**

_UGHHHHH. I’m gonna kill him._

**He just wants to watch out for you, he means well. He should get to live. **

**But I do want to talk to you.**

_Steve. That is a variation of the worst words for any relationship. ever. EVER. _

**It’s nothin’ like that. Just…if people are going to warn me off of you because of my feelings, and questioning my priorities and intentions…I feel like its important that you know them first.**

_I am getting whiplash here. Now I’m worried you’re gonna propose. And we haven’t even gone on our first real date yet. What did Dick say to you?_

**He just told me to stay away from you. Which I don’t intend on doing. I just…Dick isn’t a part of our relationship so, I should tell you the answers to his worries, which might be buggin’ you too.**

**hey! I’d like to think I would be smoother than this for a proposal!**

_That’s sweet. _

_I am going to kill him though. I don’t need his help._

_Steven, you are a lot of amazing things. Smooth with women is not usually one of those things. I wouldn’t put it past you._

**Ha. Ha.**

_;) _

_Today went ok, right? Nothing too broken?_

**Yeah, I’m ok. I should be home in plenty of time for our date tomorrow**

_Yay!!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for the kind comments so far! I hope you're still enjoying the story. I'll be back with another chapter soon! <3


	7. Chapter Seven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Darcy and Steve go on a real Date

Darcy sat in her living room worrying her lip. It was five minutes until she was supposed to go on her first real date with Steve and she _was_ excited but…the overriding feeling was worry. Worry if it would go well, worry that if it didn’t go well things would be super awkward, and worry that Steve would be so busy with hero stuff that he’d forget or not show up. Grayson did have one thing right; she had said she wasn’t going to date any more superheroes because she had felt dejected every time he’d gone out with Bruce to watch over Gotham rather than their dates. And the timing of this Injustice thing over their first date wasn’t exactly ideal, she’d like to be able to have a honeymoon period with Steve but it was a test. If she felt like things were being set up to follow a similar pattern then she would tell Steve they should stay friends. But she really wanted to be able to be more with Steve. He was very kissable and she’d like to be able to act on that impulse.

She had just picked up her phone to text Steve to see if he had actually made it home last night when she heard a knock on her door. When she opened it there he was with some flowers and an excited smile.

“For you,” he said and Darcy couldn’t help the small squeal she let out.

“Thank you! One second, I’ll be right back,” she told him as she hurried to put the flowers in a vase, wanting to move on to their outing. “Hi!”

“Hi,” Steve leaned in to kiss her on the cheek and she felt her breath stutter for a second. “Are you ready?”

At her nod, he grabs her hand and they head down to the garage where Steve’s bike was parked. Steve presents her with her very own helmet and shows her the shelf where he and Bucky keep their helmets. Then properly prepared they head off to their destination. Steve hadn’t told her where they were going but she trusted him to plan things out, and was very content to place her chin on his shoulder and enjoy the ride.

Before too much time had passed they had arrived at the beach. Off by the pier was a Ferris wheel turning in the distance.

“Coney Island Captain? Is this where you take all your dates?” She asks in a teasing tone as they place their helmets in a bag on the back.

Steve blushes for a second, “I won’t say I’ve never done it in my life but hasn’t been anyone besides friends to go with for a while and I’ve always had fun before. I think it’ll be even better with you. Plus, its easy to get lost in a crowd here. I don’t think it’ll matter who either of us are.”

She slips her hand into his before saying, “Sounds perfect to me Steve. Let’s go.”

They start by walking up and down the beach even venturing a little bit into the waves as the water was a nice balance to the hot sun as fall proved it wasn’t all cloudy days and turning leaves. Once Darcy has admitted she’s thirsty they head up to the boardwalk where some of the restaurants and amusement parks are. They ride the bumper cars, and go on the Ferris wheel. Darcy, happy and snuggling up to Steve, turns to kiss him as they rise up to see the reach of the city. He hums content, and deepens it, sliding his hand into her hair.

After their turn of the wheel they wander into the aquarium in time to see the otters being fed.

“Did you know that otters hold hands when they sleep?” Darcy asks as they watch.

“No,” he answers with a small laugh, “why do they do that?”

“So they don’t drift off from each other in the water. They’re so cute, Stevie.”

“You’re cute, sweetheart.” Steve can’t help the growing smile when she shrugs flustered at the compliment. After the feeding they continue walking the aquarium, and see a 4d show.

When they leave the aquarium it’s almost time to eat and Steve offers to find them a real restaurant.

“I’d rather get something from a food cart, and eat it on a bench watching the sunset honestly.” He agrees and they get a variety of carnival foods and find a bench to sit on. They discuss the other things that they still want to do and Darcy points out that they can always come back, which elicits another genuine smile from Steve, wide across his face reaching his eyes. Darcy can’t help but want to see more of those as often as possible. They’re on the way to the Cyclone—at Darcy’s insistence once the story of Bucky and the rollercoaster comes out. After having teased Steve before he fell, once they had returned to New York and worked everything out between Steve, Tony, and Bucky the three men had gone to Coney Island and faced down the roller coaster and all the awkward interactions that threatened them—when Darcy pulls him to the side.

“Steve, I just…I’ve really had an amazing day and I just wanted to say thank you for such a great date. And I really appreciate that even though you were busy yesterday that you didn’t just blow me off,” she tells him fiddling with a string on the bottom of her shirt.

He stops her gently, holding onto her hand. “Darcy, of course. You’re important to me. You, as a person who is my friend—and yes as a person I’m romantically interested in too. Obviously with how crazy our lives are not all of our plans are going to be able to happen when we want them to, but if we both make each other a priority I don’t think we have to worry as much about what has driven a wedge between your other relationships. Plus, if it becoming an issue I want you to say something. I want to know, okay?”

“Okay,” she nods and they continue on their way. After the Cyclone when Darcy starts to shiver Steve buys her a hoodie with Brighton Beach emblazoned across the front. Neither of them had thought they’d be gone all day and Steve wanted her to have a physical memory of the day. They’re on their way back to his bike when he sees a carnival game that catches his eye. He points it out, a game where they were supposed to toss mini versions of Steve’s shield, and she drags him over to it. They both play three games, using the first to get a feel for it and the next two to accumulate enough points to win. They tell the person running the game what prize they want separately and laugh when Darcy and Steve present the other with a midsized plushy otter. The little stuffed animals fit perfectly in the bag once the helmets are on their heads.

They head back to the tower chatting over the microphones amicably. When they get back FRIDAY tells them that the others are watching a movie in the common room and Steve asks her if she wants to go.

She looks worried for a second. She still doesn’t want to intrude in super hero stuff but Steve tells her, “Look, if you honestly don’t want to we don’t have to go. But Jane and Thor always go to movie nights, and we can get ready and allow FRIDAY to tell the room that you are coming up in case anyone has objections or wants to keep their identity secret. My honest guess though is that they aren’t going to care. You’ve met about half of them anyways. But its your choice and I want to give you that space.”

“Okay…but FRIDAY has to tell them. And if any of them don’t want me to go I’m going to stay in my room.”

“And I’ll stay with you, if you want. I’d like to watch a movie with you. I don’t really care about where.”

“I’d like that,” she tells him with a gentle kiss on the cheek.

They part ways with instructions for FRIDAY. A few minutes into Darcy getting ready the AI informs her that the movie room crowd would really like for both of them to join. She goes up to Steve’s apartment with her movie blanket and he’s there with popcorn. They go up to the common floor and she’s pleasantly surprised to find out that she does indeed know most of the people there. The only one’s she hasn’t met yet are Bruce Banner, and two twins who introduce themselves as Pietro and Wanda. Pepper pokes Tony when he starts to playfully tease Darcy, but she rolls her eyes used to the man’s antics from the party and meetings with her brother.

The movie passes with commentary sprinkled throughout followed by shushing when the room gets too loud. Darcy’s content to cuddle next to Steve and listen to this team that’s grown to be a family reminding her a little of the movie nights her own family has on the rare occasion Bruce deems they can stay in. It surprises her when Natasha asks her a question. One that in retrospect makes sense and that Darcy is sure Bruce has wondered at least once when he’s not being protective.

“Darcy…you have so many superheroes in your life, have you ever wanted to be one?”

“Um…” Darcy stares at the other woman not sure how to answer. “No. I mean I respect what you all do, and I am very thankful for it. Its not for me, I like to do my work for Gotham and the world in the day time. You all confront problems that exist now. We have villains now. But I want to confront problems as they arise or even before and use Wayne Enterprises to help people.”

That seems to be enough for the spy as well as the rest of the heroes who sit in the room, especially after Thor chimes, “Aye. There is work for everyone in the world and your path—though linked with us and ours—is entirely your own Lady Darcy. You walk it with grace and dignity.”

“Thanks Thor.”

The room quiets again after the exchange and as the movie ends, several stay seated talking about what if anything they want to watch next, but Steve nudges Darcy and asks if she wants to leave after seeing she’s started to fall asleep. He accompanies her back to her apartment.

“Good night Little Otter, thank you for such a great day. I’ll text you tomorrow morning?” he asks her as he brushes some hair from her face. Darcy, always a touchy person can’t help but to lean further into his touch.

“Thank you, I really loved it. We should go with Bucky, Nat, Thor, and Jane sometime. Good night Big Otter. I can’t wait to hear from you.” That being said she turns to press a kiss into his hand, and then they kiss goodnight before parting ways.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know Steve goes to Coney Island in a lot of fics but I figured that it'd be a great way for Darcy to get to know the city a little better. I also had no idea before researching just how much stuff there is to do around there! I hope you had a good weekend and your week starts off grand!


	8. Chapter Eight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time marches on and Darcy gets a visit from home!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello dear readers! There are several points in this and the next chapter that reference some of the side stories I've written in this series. If you're enjoying this I'd suggest giving those a look, they were all a part of the Darcy Lewis April Fools Day Challenge and so are fairly light hearted. However, you should be able to continue to read this story if you don't read them. Enjoy!

Darcy is not surprised when she starts Monday with a phone call from her brother.

“Dee, how’s New York? I heard you hired Jennifer Walters _and_ Laurel?” Bruce’s warm tenor voice filled her ear, making Darcy sorely miss Gotham more than usual.

“Bee, good morning. New York is great. I did, they’re working out perfect so far. I’m making friends, I’m doing good work for both our company and your…hobby. How are you, Tim, and Alfred?” Darcy putters around the kitchen making tea and eating her breakfast.

“They’re good. Tim’s doing well in school, he’s getting ready to take his SAT in a month or so, so Dick’s been visiting to help out.”

Darcy straightens at this, “Oh? Is everything okay in Gotham, that you need the help?”

“There’s some…concerning things happening. I think there may be a new player in Gotham. Dick’s mostly around just so Tim can study. He’s looking into a couple of colleges and I don’t want him distracted from that.”

“Look at you being all responsible. Let me know if there’s anything I can do daytime wise, yeah? I can pick up some extra things at work for you if you need.”

The pause is audible which worries Darcy but eventually Bruce sighs and says, “I will. For now stay safe in New York.”

Darcy hums in agreement and she’s about ready to say goodbye when Bruce clears his throat.

“But uh, speaking of Dick. He mentioned that you started dating Steve Rogers? Are you sure about this, weren’t you just on a magazine cover with him?”

“It was an amazing date Bruce. We did get photographed a week or so ago but honestly he was just rescuing me from a bad date who actually called the photographers. I mean maybe it won’t work out but for right now I feel very cared for, and our personalities mesh well.”

“He did good, during the Injustice stuff. Had a calm head, and held his own. He’s definitely everything history promised he was. I suppose he’s worthy of a chance at you. Above all else I want you to be happy.”

“I know Bee. I want the same for you too. You know, whatever and whenever that may be.”

“Thanks Dee. Okay…well,” Bruce clears his throat and Darcy rolls her eyes at the discomfort clear in his voice at their small display of familial care. “I love you and will talk to you soon. Take care.”

“Love you Brucieeeeee. Bye!”

Darcy finishes getting ready and then heads into her office for the day. MJ is working out splendidly and Darcy had already sent an email full of praise for the girl to Pepper and had started working on a letter of recommendation for the young woman in case she asked one day. Natasha had also returned to help. With the additions of Jennifer and Laurel the offices Darcy had been given for her work was starting to feel quite full which was exactly how she liked it. She had moved on from the most recent and oldest material to the videos and data that came in between. Darcy had shifted most of the Gotham stuff to MJ and Laurel not needing to relive it.

“MJ, I think I’m going to need you to go to the archives again.”

“Sure thing, but what am I looking for Darcy?”

Darcy taps her pen against her lips thinking exactly what direction she needed to go next, “Will you pull the most negative stuff towards superheroes? We haven’t really looked at it and I’m feeling like we are missing where the anger and fear is coming from. Also while you’re down there will you look into past Stark Expos and see if there’s anything about Wayne Enterprises? Bruce is having me start preparing for that as well. If there’s not anything here I’ll ask someone from Gotham to check our archives.”

MJ nods and heads off. The women continue to work, with music playing in the background and soft conversation as they work towards finding the right PR stance to craft for superhero support.

Around lunch the elevator dings. Darcy doesn’t bother to look up, sure its just MJ back from the archives so when footsteps stop at her desk she’s surprised to look up into Steve’s face. He’s come prepared with a bright fun mug for her and an easy smile.

“I was hoping you have time for a lunch away from your desk but if not I’m happy to come back with food.”

“I think I can manage that.”

Steve holds up his arm for her and Darcy slips her arm around his elbow. They spend the entire hour she has for lunch eating and talking at a little place Steve takes her to. He asks questions about her work but also asks her more about Gotham and her friends. He’s a little bit hesitant talking about himself, but does open up when she asks talking more about now than when he was younger but Darcy expected that. She would’ve been worried if he still was more focused on the 1930s and 40s.

As they’re walking back to her office she mentions the conversation she had with Bruce that morning. Steve looks at her with an interested quirk of his mouth inviting her to continue. She divulges that he tentatively had both Bruce and Alfred in his corner for now. He leaves her at her desk with a small kiss saying, “I’ll see you later otter.”

“Bye otter!”

Once he leaves Natasha asks what the nickname was about and Darcy tells her, only blushing a little bit. Nat allows the romantic side that Bucky’s spent a lot of time coaxing out to show telling Darcy that she and Steve are cute, and that she would like to go on a double date soon. Towards the end of the day Darcy gets a text from Jane asking for a girls’ night, as Thor has to go home to Asgard for a week or so. Darcy floats the idea aloud to her office and Nat, Jenn, and Laurel agree while MJ begs off which Darcy more or less expected. She texts Jane back and they set the girls night up for Friday night.

~~~

When their girls’ night arrives, Darcy is looking forward to it, sorely needing a break. Between Monday and today Jameson had posted a very negative reading on superheroes and how Darcy was running the PR for them, which several news sites had picked up. She, Jenn, and Laurel were playing ball with them all now and were still unsure how it would all actually shake out. Plus Tim had texted Darcy worried about what was happening in Gotham because—despite what Bruce had told Darcy—he had already taken his SATs and was now being kept out of the loop by Bruce and Dick. When she had, reluctantly, addressed them about it they told her they were just being careful for Tim since they were unsure of what this new villain was actually capable of, and Dick had pleaded for her to stay in New York and not come visit until they told her it was safe. Now they had just sprung on her today when she had asked for the Gotham archives that Tim was coming to visit with the information for the next week or two.

But the night with her friends does her good. Jane and Natasha were making the drinks and conversation was kept mostly casual. Jennifer had brought a variety of games and the women worked their way through Catan—Natasha soundly beating them all—as well as a bunch of indie games that Jennifer had collected throughout the years. They do talk some of romance, especially when Jennifer and Laurel talk about the people in the city they’ve met who interest them, and of course they bring up what Steve did on Monday asking Darcy to spill details. She keeps fairly tight lipped still enjoying the newness of their relationship. Afterwards the ladies turn towards how they can continue to better the world through their work and how they can work together. Darcy heads into the kitchen when it turns towards talk of superheroes and makes everyone another round of drinks. They all fall asleep soon after, a movie still playing in the background.

~~~

Tim arrives late Tuesday morning, obviously still miffed that’s he’s being so clearly kept out of the loop. Darcy tries to give him something to do but he keeps muttering to himself so she closes the door to her office to allow him to vent.

“Its just—its so clear that whoever this is, is not only really getting to them but also totally out maneuvering them Dee. They’re no closer to knowing who this person is—even an alias is alluding them—and they won’t let me help,” the senior kicks at her couch and then flops on it before groaning into the pillow, “No. They won’t let me help but _Stephanie_ who’s been a pain in my butt since she started ‘helping’ as Spoiler gets to help. ‘Oh don’t worry Tim she’s not going to replace you, its just that she doesn’t remind us of all our failures to Jason the way you do sometimes.’”

Darcy raises an eyebrow at him as he peeks over the side of the pillow. “They did not say that.”

“No, but its true and you know it. Which isn’t fair to Stephanie either. She’s gotten some training but not the same way that I have. If something happened to her then how would they feel?”

“Guilty, but they pretend they don’t know that. They’ll allow it to take them by surprise whereas they so very clearly can’t with you right now. What’s bringing up the Jason stuff?” Darcy is still looking at work stuff but she’s paying attention to the young man who Bruce wants to adopt. She looks at him as more of a brother than a nephew but it’d be nice to have him in the family either way. She knows though that he doesn’t like all the attention whether it comes in an adoption request or all of Darcy’s undivided focus.

“Well…the fifth anniversary is coming up in a few months. That’s freaking Bee out. Dick too but he is just channeling grief into anger. Alfred’s all introspective, and all three have pushed us—the two most likely to be able to help them deal with it—away. But I think, and I don’t know ‘cause Bruce has changed the access codes for Jason’s files, that some of the stuff that this guy is leaving as a calling card is reminding them of him. Plus like sometimes it seems like he’s a good guy and sometimes it seems like he’s a bad guy. Stephanie’s really stumped by it all. And they didn’t even let me take Ace when it was my idea to get a dog.”

“Hmmm.” Silence reigns over the office as Darcy sifts through this new information. “All right they get the two weeks they asked for but then you _are_ going back home. Being able to miss school for a ‘unique internship position’ that falls around the same time as fall break is different than dropping out of your senior year all together. I could use the help around the office, and maybe Steve or Tony will let you help out hero wise, since I know you types get itchy if you can’t help. I’m sorry they didn’t let you take Ace.”

Tim tries to help her, really he does. And he’s normally a very bright boy but he just can’t seem to figure out the angle Darcy’s trying to get him to see. After three hours of an unhelpful mess on his temporary desk, Darcy pulls him up to go explore Stark Tower. He forms an instant connection with Tony’s intern and MJ’s boyfriend Peter but Tony tells them he doesn’t have time to teach anyone else so they move on. They’re almost through the whole of the tower that Darcy’s thought might interest him when they reach Jane’s lab. Her friend is at a whiteboard trying to figure out some formula that’s interfering with her progress, and waves them in with an absent hello. After a minute Tim points out that one of her two’s shifted into a five and Jane looks gobsmacked before figuring out exactly which one he was talking about. Darcy leaves them alone for a few minutes, getting a coffee for her and Jane, and a hot chocolate for Tim who _hated_ coffee.

“Where did you come from?” Jane asks the young man standing before her.

“Um, well I’m Tim, and I came from Gotham to help Darcy but I think I’m actually driving her insane.”

“He’s my brother’s ward, but Bruce is being broody. So he’s my ward for the next two weeks!” Darcy plows on through Tim’s mention of he’s not sure that’s exactly how that works. “He’s great. But he doesn’t really get the over extended chess games of politics we have to play, could he help you for the next few weeks?”

“I’d love that, if you’d like to stay Tim?” Jane turns all her attention on the boy, and Darcy is surprised that he doesn’t shrink from it, and eagerly agrees to playing intern for the astrophysicist.

Darcy heads back up to her office after setting a time for her and Tim to meet back up. There’s a text from Steve asking her how things are going so far. She texts him back and then returns to work. When Jane drops Tim off several hours later she packs up and they go to her apartment, where Steve is waiting for them with food.

“You’re…you-”

“I’m Steve. Its nice to meet you. Darcy’s told me some about you,” Steve tells him with a small smile. “And I got food. Darcy texted me your usual order so I hope you don’t mind that I’m crashing dinner.”

“No. No I don’t mind.”

As Steve heads in Tim makes eye contact with Darcy mouthing ‘woooooow’, overwhelmed even though he routinely hung out with super heroes. Darcy claps him on the shoulder as she follows Steve telling Tim, “As Dick would say, try to stay whelmed.”

Steve sets the food out in the living room as Darcy gets everything else ready to go. Tim is a kind of nervous quiet and just sits and smiles. They sit and watch TV and Tim feels himself relaxing, Dick and Bruce had both fretted about Darcy dating Captain America to him and so he’d felt a building confliction. On one hand he was a bit of a Captain America fan, even before he was a fan of Batman and Robin; on the other hand he was Robin now and he felt a loyalty to Bruce, Dick, and Darcy and wanted her to be safe and happy as much as the other men. He thought he was going to have to hate Steve but here he was spending the time to get to know Tim and what he was hoping to go to school for.

“And Stephanie’s just planning on staying in Gotham. She’s gonna work at her uncle’s shop during the day and try to help Bruce at night, but I’ll be honest she has a _bit_ of an authority problem and I’m not sure that’s gonna chill with Bruce. If I’m not in Gotham though, I think…and I haven’t told Bruce yet, so don’t you either Darce, but I’ve been thinking about maybe, putting aside my Robin suit for a little while. Just enjoy being a college student. Dick’s been talking about me developing my own suit and alter ego for a while and I don’t know how to tell him that I’m not sure I’m ready to be Nightwing 2.0. You know?”

“I get it. Bucky and I always did everything together, until…the train. And when I first came back I struggled to make my own life, find my own path. Like Dick did to a certain extent I’m sure. And when Bucky came back, I was so excited to have someone to share my path with that I didn’t even think to ask, for the longest time, if he did want to share the path with me. And the thing is, he didn’t. Not for a while. He needed to do his own thing first. And we were still best friends then, and eventually he decided he did want to come back. But you don’t have to Tim. You _should_ go to college, and put aside Robin for a little while, and if you miss it or decide that heroing is the best way for you to help then I’m sure that Dick and Bruce will be happy to welcome you back. Darcy might feel thwarted but she would rather everyone stay safe on the couch during nights.” Steve shrugs as he digs around his takeout container. He wanted to help the young man but it had to be his own choice.

“Yes, I would!” Darcy says with a laugh, not sure how that always sounds so insane to hero types, “But I’ll tell you the same thing I told Dick a long time ago. I can’t control what you are going to do, and I don’t want to Tim. Especially if what I would choose for you isn’t what you would choose for yourself. But I do, and would, want you to be careful and do your best to come home safe every night.” 

Tim nods thoughtfully and Darcy backs off for a moment. Dick had had the Young Justice group the last year or two before he went to Blüdhaven and she felt that had a lot to do with why he wanted to become Nightwing so bad. She knew the group still existed but also that Tim had dealt with a lot for and as a part of that group, and had parted ways with them even when Bruce tried to encourage him to stay.

“You know, maybe…you could talk to some of the people you used to know from the Young Justice team. They’re all around your age and probably are going through some of the same stuff. I bet Wondergirl or Speedy can help you, at least they’d get what you’re going through.” Tim shrugs in response, and Darcy grimaces. This was all over her head. Tim asks if they can watch some specific show he follows and Darcy tells him sure. She and Steve cuddle on the couch. When she complains of sore shoulders, Steve gets up and finds her microwavable neck pillow thing, heating it up for her. He also brews some tea that she had mentioned helped and delivers both to her with a small kiss to her temple. Darcy grins and snuggles into Steve when he sits back down. Tim smiles softly when he sees the exchange. Bruce had nothing to worry about; Darcy had obviously found a good guy. Dick would probably still be hesitant, but Tim thought he had higher standards than even Bruce. He wasn’t sure it would count for much, but Steve had his seal of approval at least.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We've now met Tim! I love him and really want to write a story about Tim and Peter being teen supers, nerds, and friends. Maybe some day we’ll add it to the verse


	9. Chapter Nine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The rest of Tim's visit, and there's some super hero trouble.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First and foremost, this is one of the chapters with mentions of canon typical violence. It is not detailed, but it does involve children. If you want/need to skip it start after "they didn't make it to the festival" and the immediate discussion of it ends after "safe, held, and loved." There are briefer mentions to it throughout the rest of the chapter after that. I will include a summary in the end notes. 
> 
> Second, this is the second chapter posted today, so make sure you read chapter eight too!

Darcy greatly enjoyed spending time with Tim. During his stay Bruce had to go to Asgard as part of the Justice League being accepted as part of Thor’s delegation from Earth. While he was gone he left Ace with Darcy, taking Tim with him. Clint had gone with and had left his dog Lucky with Darcy as well. The two dogs had dumped Darcy with a tiny kitten after they had sneaked out. When Tim came back, disgruntled that Bruce was making him finish his two weeks with Darcy he turned his attention towards the little animal. She had named him d’Artagnan. Tim also focused on helping Jane. She was working towards making portals to help supers get where they needed quickly. Darcy thought it did him a lot of good to be around people who were looking to help without going out in a costume. He’d been Robin for the past three years and Darcy had done what she could to help instill some normal in his life but Bruce was a huge part of his life.

Steve also spent a lot of time with the 18 year old. Getting lunch with him and just talking to him. He, Darcy, Jane, Thor, Nat, Bucky and Tim had all gone out to get dinner one night and the amount of videos that Tim had on his phone now of the crazy antics of these people were hilarious. Darcy kept trying to get him to send them to her so she could use them on Steve’s social but Tim was refusing.

All too soon for Darcy’s liking was Tim’s time to go back to Gotham. Bruce and Dick were still being secretive but when Darcy put her foot down that Tim needed to go finish school they conceded the point. Darcy sent him off with some cookies and a promise that he’ll call or text if things get too weird even for their strange little family. That night Steve made Darcy come to game night in the common room knowing that she would need some distraction and love. She was surprised to see Jennifer and Laurel there, but they simply shrugged when she raised an eyebrow in question. She shrugs back and rolls with it.

Steve’s talking about the giant pumpkin festival the New York Botanic Gardens was holding which he thought a bunch of them should go to the night of Halloween after they’d given out candy in the tower lobby. Darcy was up for it, though she wasn’t as excited as she’d normally be, missing home a lot that night. She loved all of the holidays at Wayne Manner and the parties she would throw having crafted them to things that were actually fun.

~~~

They didn’t end up making it to the festival though. Crossbones had taken hostages and the Avengers were off to deal with him. Darcy was shocked that Steve came to find her in person before he left, suited up already.

“I’m sorry, Darce. I know we had all these plans but—”

“But nothing. You have to deal with this. Come home safe please,” Darcy cuts him off, a little sad that he already put his cowl on wanting to comfort herself by running her fingers through his hair. He kisses her and promises her he will do his best. Darcy finishes her day but both her and MJ are distracted so she tells MJ to take the rest of the day off. Jane and Pepper find her when she’s about to go to her apartment and draw her down to the lobby to participate in the holiday at least a little. They ooh and aah over the costumes. At nine when most of their trick or treaters had trickled away Jane suggested that the three of them still go to the pumpkin festival but Darcy waves them off, tired and missing Steve and her family.

She had just gotten into bed when FRIDAY chimed softly in her room. Steve had just arrived home and was asking if Darcy was still awake. She told FRIDAY to tell Steve she was, and that she could go to his apartment or he could come to hers. Darcy had almost drifted of to sleep when she heard Steve’s soft knock, she got up to open the door and saw a mess of a man with red rimmed eyes. His cowl was off but otherwise Steve still wore much of his uniform.

“Steve? What’s wrong?” Darcy asks as she draws him inside.

“They were kids Darce. Kids in-in our uniforms, as c-costumes. He was taunting us. He’d had them all day.” Steve crumpled in her arms; shoulders shaking as tears streaked down his cheek. “We saved ‘em but what they went through. What he did to them. Its awful, Darcy. Awful.”

“Steve, baby. I am so sorry he put you and them through that.” Darcy ran her fingers through his hair this time; trying to give them both some measure of comfort. “C’mon, take a shower and then we can go to sleep. You can be the little otter tonight.”

Darcy makes Steve some tea while he’s in the shower. She knows it won’t help that much, not really; but its something and sometimes that matters more. While he’s in the shower she texts several people setting things up for the upcoming days. He comes back into the room wearing a pair of PJs that had migrated into her apartment over the past week or two. She throws the blankets aside for him and he crawls in squirming next to her for cuddles. True to her word she hands him her otter and then does her best to make Steve Rogers feel small, safe, held, and loved.

~~~~

In the morning Steve was still sleeping when she woke up. She slipped out of bed silently and checked her phone to see if her texts had been answered. She forwarded Tony the contact information for the offices of the child psychologist she and Bruce had gone to when they were little. There were five partners there and all were willing to extend their expertise in trauma to the rescued children. Darcy made sure to tell Tony that though she was sure that he, like her, would want to pay for it the funds needed to come from the money that was set aside for these exact situations. It would show the public that the measures the superheroes had put in place would work. And if he wanted, he could like Darcy make a charitable and anonymous donation to said fund.

Then she went up to the roof where Tony had a space for a helicopter to land. From the steps of a helicopter jumped a man in his sixties who spent a lot of his time trying to keep up with much younger people who liked to put him through everything. Alfred Pennyworth hurried to Darcy’s arms, worried about why she had reached out.

“What do we need to do?” he asked in his usual calm and no nonsense tone.

“Make it homey,” Darcy replies simply.

They head to the common floor and its huge kitchen space that Darcy had only ever seen used for snacks—though Steve was trying to get her to come to Team Dinners. She and Alfred set up shop, first making breakfast with directions for FRIDAY to tell everyone that there were treats in the common room. They break out all the recipes that Darcy and Alfred had tested over the years and determined brought the most comfort. The recipes that they kept in reserve for Christmas or when comfort was sorely needed. They started with breakfast going to the cinnamon rolls that were Darcy’s favorites, though they also made a bunch of eggs, bacon, toast and fresh orange and apple juices. Steve joined them right as they were finishing putting everything that needed to be kept warm in one of the extra ovens Tony had had installed. They take time to eat and chat, Alfred keeping things light for Steve. Then the duo turns towards making soup for later. Darcy directs Steve to turn on a movie or show that’s funny and light. Something soothing for everyone’s hurts.

Slowly the team starts to trickle in, surprised by the stranger standing in their kitchen, but Darcy introduces everyone to her ‘substitute dad’. She also asks Nat to turn the station to one of the morning news programs. There in front of Stark Tower stood both Jennifer and Laurel explaining to the press exactly what the Hero Foundation was doing for the impacted children and their families. Darcy then smiles at the team gathered in front of her.

“I also would like to ask you all to pick from these charities,” Darcy says as she points to a selection of papers in front of her, “they’ve all been vetted by the people in my office. These ones all have to do with children in one way or another. These ones don’t. Today we are going to volunteer, quietly, while the Justice League does so loudly. I strongly believe that doing some quiet small goods will help to soothe all of our ruffled edges after yesterday’s event. Then we’ll come back and eat some soup. It’s what Alfred and I do every time my brother has to deal with some particularly tough stuff. We’ve gotten Bruce to participate a few times. He says it helps him some.”

Darcy’s nervous that this is going to blow up in her face but all the people in the room before her eat the breakfast she and Alfred had worked over each of them reading and discussing the charities Darcy and MJ had picked for such occasions. She had texted her assistant and invited her and Peter to come as well, acting on another hunch. The pair shows up while there’s still some breakfast. Peter picks the same organization as Tony which doesn’t surprise anyone. These organizations had agreed to accept the help of uncostumed supers, knowingly or not, and wouldn’t breath a word to any news media as long as they did get a chance to have a media day with those supers at some other point. 

Steve picks a charity that partner with children’s hospitals to provide patients with experiences that they otherwise wouldn’t get to have. It’s the sort of thing that he himself could have greatly benefitted from before he received the serum. Darcy goes with him and they have a great day with the kids. There was even a special mini golf course that was being set up in their wing that they got to play with too.

When the day was done and everyone gathered back to enjoy the several different soups Alfred had made, the atmosphere was definitely lighter. The events of the day before hadn’t been forgotten, and they shouldn’t be. However, the memory of it had shifted a little further back where it didn’t hurt as much and instead of being something to regret and be sour over could instead be learned from.

It didn’t stop Steve from following Darcy back to her bedroom once the evening’s activities were over and a guest room for Alfred had been found, still wanting the comfort of being the little otter for at least another night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter summary from "they didn't make the festival" on: crossbones kidnaps children in Avengers costumes and does villainy stuff. Steve is deeply affected by it and goes to Darcy for comfort. The rest of the chapter focuses on how Darcy (and Alfred) offer Steve and the other Avengers the Wayne coping methods.
> 
> I think I will post one more chapter just so we can end on a positive note tonight!


	10. Chapter Ten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Its the holiday season! Darcy celebrates Thanksgiving and the beginning of the holiday season.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heya! I am on a posting roll tonight! This is the third chapter posted today so make sure you're caught up before reading this one. Also, the gala at the end of this chapter and who Darcy and Steve meet were the inspiration for this whole story and series, so I really hope you all like it!

November passed quickly. The entire month found Darcy on the edge of being overworked between both the PR for the supers and the Stark Expo planning. With four months to go it seemed like there was plenty of time but Darcy was quickly finding out that there was a lot more to it than she had previously believed. Still her relationship with Steve was going well, they had managed to keep mostly out of the press and communication between them was clear and open, even the few times they had argued.

Her cat had grown an unbelievable amount, to the point Darcy was asking Thor if it was possible an Asgardian cat had come with him once on the Bifrost. Girls’ night had become a weekly thing, as had game nights in the common room. Darcy was still hesitant about finding out so many supers’ identities but every time she protested the heroes in question assured her that they trusted her and insisted that if she was going to fight for them so passionately she had earned a little good will and trust.

She had grown to like, maybe even love, New York City and the way her life was structured here. Her heart still ultimately belonged to Gotham, and she missed her home a lot. Tim was texting her at least three times a week, but mostly Dick and Bruce were keeping him out of the loop still worried about the new person operating there. They had apparently found a name but weren’t sharing it with anyone—even Alfred was being kept in the dark, much to his displeasure. But when Darcy called to set up when she was coming home Bruce was adamant she stay in New York.

“Ex-fucking-cuse me? You want me to what?” Darcy asks, her tone going scary quiet.

“Darcy. You can not come home right now,” Bruce tells her.

“Bullshit Bruce. Gotham is my home, you can’t just not let me back in.”

“Darcy, it’s not as simple as that and you know it. Of course I want you home. Of course I want you here, but it’s not safe right now. Please stay there, with Steve.”

“Well then can you guys come here? I miss you all. Even stupid Dick.” Darcy can’t help the whine in her voice. She’d been telling Steve that she missed her family—especially with all the dangerous stuff they were currently facing—and phone conversations weren’t doing it anymore.

“Alfred and Tim could go, I don’t know if Dick and I could make it. I think Dick has plans with Barbara,” Bruce waits for this news to shock her. Tim had ended up spilling the beans, mad when he had found out that the former Batgirl had returned to the superscene to help Dick and Bruce and he was still being kept out. Darcy rolls her eyes.

Babs had been cautious around Darcy originally, convinced the teen would want her spot next to Bruce once she had found out Bruce had expanded his circle. They had grown close though, especially after her accident with the Joker, and Darcy had originally encouraged her to go after Grayson when news of her crush had been spilled over drinks after Darcy and Dick had broken up for good. She had ribbed Barbra into telling her both that they were dating and that she had returned though so the air had been cleared between the two women once more and Babs had a standing invite to girls night if she ever needed a break from the chaos of Gotham.

“Old news Bee. They’re both invited if they want to be. I know Commissioner Gordon usually works most holidays so it wouldn’t surprise me if their plans were just to work too. Which is lame and against the rules, you guys know that. Even if it’s just for a few hours you _have_ to take a break and do family stuff. I will see you on Thanksgiving. Bring everybody. Stephanie can come too if she is lacking some place to go.”

She hangs up then not willing to allow Bruce to try to weasel his way out of it. Darcy instead texts the giant group text she had been added to of Tower residents and implements the rules she had set up years ago for her boys.

_If you all are in this city on Thanksgiving you are requested to attend our Thanksgiving meal in the common room at noon. You are not allowed to work all day unless physically out of the country. Ya’ll need a break. Bruce and co are coming as well. Let me know if you want to help with anything <3_

Her phone blows up over the course of the day but her favorite text is from Tim, which is just a gif of dancing victory happy to be able to see Darcy again some way.

Day of finds her, Steve, Nat, Bucky, Jane, and Thor in the kitchen all busy making something and enjoying the morning with the parade on in the background. Clint had gone with the twins to the actual parade, though almost everyone else had begged off because it was a very chilly morning. The Gotham crew was supposed to be there in another hour, which had Darcy practically vibrating in excitement.

Clint and the twins made their way back, their number having grown to include MJ, Peter, his friend Ned, and Peter’s aunt May. Clint and May were flirting in a way that made Peter huff though Ned and MJ seemed to think it was hilarious. Tony and Pepper join next, and then Bruce Banner with his girlfriend Betty Ross. Jennifer came with them, having moved in with her cousin. Laurel made it up after them, also having been at the parade. Sam skyped in for a little bit, having gone home to be with his family. Just as dinner is ready, and Darcy is starting to think Bruce is going to break her rule, Bruce and company fall through the door. Tim leads the way, with Alfred close behind. Dick and Barbara come next, Stephanie is hiding herself in the middle—anxious about all the new people—Bruce acts as the sheep dog herding everyone else in. Darcy can see that whoever this new baddie is, it’s weighing on her brother heavily.

Darcy’s old and new lives crash into one another in a swirl of loud voices and happy laughter rising above it all. She conducts introductions as much as possible, but its time to eat and she knows people are hungry. She gets Steve to gather everyone’s attention and she lets everyone know that she is so appreciative they are in her life and that they are together today. The food is laid out on the counter tops and she instructs everyone to help themselves before sitting at the three tables pushed together. After dinner Bruce, Tim, and Dick take charge of the dishes while everyone else starts to play cards or watch sports. Desert comes out a few hours later and everyone dives in with aplomb. Darcy, leaning against Steve in blissed out comfort, is happy to see that Natasha and Wanda have drawn out the unusually shy Steph into an eager conversation about the role of women superheroes. Tim settles next to her as Thor deals out cards for a game of Phase Ten.

While people are playing Darcy sits next to Dick as they both watch the game being played in front of them. Darcy pinches Dick but his face doesn’t give away anything.

“Grayson.”

“Wayne.”

“Awfully rich of you to vaguely threaten Steve when you are also dating someone else new,” Darcy is talking quietly, knowing if they whispered the nosy supers would try to find out what is being said. She also knows Steve and Bucky are both listening but at least they’re pretending not to be.

“It was not about you dating someone, it was about you dating him. You said you weren’t going to work.”

“I lied, kinda. It would have been hard for us to make it work so we had decided not to rush it. But that doesn’t matter. You can’t just go around threatening anyone I date. And not Steve. He’s important to me, like Babs is important to you. I know you’re going to say it’s not the same, but it is Johnny.”

“Darce, I’m not a jealous idiot. Even if I come across that way. If I had known you were blowing me off because I was being too nosy when you guys went to the museum I would have had a different conversation with him after the Injustice League thing. I just want you to be happy and safe. After everything we have been through and all the shit I’m sure is still to come, you are one of my best friends.”

“I know. You’re one of mine too, surprisingly. But just because we show affection through bickering doesn’t mean that you get to do that with Steve. At least not ‘til you know him better.”

“Deal. Thanks for making sure to include us. We were seriously talking about breaking your rule and it sounded bad even to me.” Dick bumps her shoulder companionably. After fifteen years of being in each other’s pockets they could easily irritate each other sometimes but they had also had time to give each other the silent treatment and work through their issues.

All too soon Bruce declares its time for them to return to Gotham. Goodbyes are said all around, and numbers are given out to keep in touch for those who have made new connections.

The Avengers stay as a group in the common room for much longer, but eventually they too drift off.

~~~

Soon enough the city is decked out in its holiday decorations. Darcy and Steve have a double date with Bucky and Natasha as the boys take their ladies to look at the window light displays and sample the various skating rinks around the city. It’s a wonderful time, and it does distract Darcy from her growing worry over her brother.

At work Darcy has a few pointed victories, as Jonah Jameson hasn’t posted anything overtly negative in a month. She knows he’ll have something soon, but for now she’s allowed Jenn to treat his reporters kinder at the press briefings. The Daily Bugle has not made it off her shit list totally though. One day about halfway into the month Natasha kidnaps her from work taking her dress shopping. Darcy’s stylist is skyped in and she has a terrifyingly efficient conversation with the Black Widow about what is and isn’t allowed in Miss Wayne’s wardrobe. The Avengers and the Justice League are holding a joint fundraising holiday gala, and Darcy agreed to go with Steve as their first official foray into the public spotlight. Eventually the three women come to a consensus about what Darcy should wear. Natasha tells her that she will come by to do her hair and that Clint will come help with makeup. They pamper her and she’s excited for the night.

~~~

Steve was on his way to pick up Darcy for the gala. He couldn’t help but to tug on his cufflinks a little nervously. Stark had said it was very fancy so Steve had bought a new tuxedo. And now here he was standing in front of Darcy’s apartment waiting for her to open the door so they could go to the ballroom in the Stark Mansion—now used as a headquarters for the various foundations Tony Stark had a hand in running. Steve was so excited! He was getting to introduce his relationship to Darcy to the world. He’d made sure to tell her how much he cared for her every chance that he got. And now he’d get to shout it to everyone else too. He shook his head to clear it; sometimes even now he couldn’t believe he was dating a Wayne. Of course she was Darcy, just Darcy; but she was also a Wayne and a lifetime ago he never would have even had the chance to meet her let alone spend time in a romantic setting with her. Taking a calming breath Steve knocked on the door. 

When she did open the door to Steve he felt his jaw drop. She looked radiant in a royal blue floor length dress, with gold beaded designs covering the top of the dress. There’s tight sleeves to her elbows and then the dress changes to a gauzy material, long and open that flows around as she fidgets with her hair, which seemed to be in some sort of fancy complicated braid twist thing that kept her hair up and off her neck while leaving a few pieces to twist gently around her face.

“That bad huh?” she jokes half-heartedly.

“No, you look stunning,” Steve tells her leaving no room for her self-doubt. “If we didn’t have to be at Stark’s thing I’d want to paint you.”

“Oh you. You look nice too by the way. I like the blue bow tie. Did Natasha tell you to wear it?”

“As a matter of fact yes. She assured me it would go well with your dress, and far be it from me to contradict Natasha Romanov. You ready?”

Darcy nods and the two of them head off, most of the others with them, which eases Darcy’s nerves. They reach Stark Mansion and Darcy laughs when she sees that Stark has set up a red carpet, with reporters and cameras lining the ropes. Steve escorts her out of the limo and towards the mansion’s double doors. The reporters are shouting at both of them and Darcy glances at Steve, not sure how he’s taking it. But his shoulders are loose, no signs of tension, and the smile on his face is genuine. Darcy finds herself enjoying this red carpet more than she usually would and when the reporters shout at them, asking them if they’re together she and Steve link hands and Darcy tells them they are indeed.

Inside Darcy can’t help but be a little reminded of the night she and Steve first met. Steve finds himself thinking of the same night. Many of the same people are there, though many of the supers whose identities are still hidden are wearing domino masks equipped with Stark Tech that would hide identifiable features. Of course there are those, like Bruce, who are attending as their civilian identities instead. Darcy and Steve spend dinner next to him. Bruce looks even more tired than he did a few weeks ago but he won’t tell Darcy anything.

Steve is dancing with Darcy when he stiffens in her arms. She looks up at him in concern but he smiles at her. “I just…I think I recognize someone. C’mon you should meet her.”

Darcy follows, curious who this ‘she’ is. Steve leads her to one of the most beautiful woman Darcy has ever seen in her life, and that is including all the models that Bruce drags home. She’s tall and muscular with gentle wavy dark brown hair. Her dress is a gorgeous deep green three-quartered sleeved garment with a plunging backline revealing nothing this woman doesn’t want to be seen.

“Diana?”

The woman turns and Darcy looks into warm brown eyes for a second before this woman’s gaze leaves hers and looks Steve over. Recognition dawns on her face and then delight. Her voice is melodic and tilting when she calls back, “Steve! It has been so long.”

If Darcy was a jealous woman, and she wouldn’t blame anyone for being jealous around this Diana person, she’d be a mess right now. If Darcy was still with Grayson, she might well be jealous tonight. But she was with Steve, and he had made her feel nothing but loved and cared for while they had been dating so far.

“Darcy Wayne, may I have the pleasure of introducing you to Diana Prince. Diana, this is my girlfriend Darcy Wayne.”

Darcy shakes the woman’s hand firmly saying, “It’s wonderful to meet you! How did you two meet?”

Diana takes a minute to look Darcy over extensively before looking to Steve who nods back to her. “We worked together during the war. I had worked with another Steve, and his own unit during the first World War, and when the second one started Peggy Carter hunted the rumors of Wonder Woman down and found me where I was hiding in my grief and spurred me into working towards a better future. After Steve rescued Bucky from Azzano and formed the Howlies I started to work with them too. They were some of the only people who could keep up with me. Steve you were not supposed to take the stories of Steve Trevor as something you should emulate.”

Steve’s ears go a little red, and Darcy raises an eyebrow impressed. She remembered the stories about Steve Trevor, and remembered the jokes her classmates had shared once everyone had also learned about Steve Rogers and their supposed shared fates.

“I’m sorry Diana, I wasn’t trying to on purpose.”

Darcy enjoys the rest of their conversation. Its clear that they were close, and that the distance between them in the years since Steve had been found were due to the grief Peggy and Diana had shared that Diana felt more sharp than ever when he had reappeared during the Battle of New York. People come up to them and Darcy knows, more than almost anyone else would, how annoying it is to have your conversation continually interrupted. So she does what years of being a Wayne have trained her to do, and she slides herself in front of Steve and Diana and greets each person genuinely. Most of them are just looking for someone recognizable to rub elbows with, and are happy to have a few words shared with a Wayne. Others chat with her, seemingly understanding why they were intercepted. A few leave after a short conversation, wanting the attention of a super hero and looking for other victims instead when it becomes clear that the short woman in front of them is not letting them speak to the duo behind her.

Eventually once people have gotten the message, Darcy looks back and recognizing that they’re still deep in reconnecting, she lets Steve know where she is going, presses a kiss to his cheek and leaves them to it. Once she is out of ear shot Diana gives Steve a measured look.

“A Wayne Captain, that is very interesting. Does her brother know? He is very…protective over her. I’d hate for that to get in between our teams.” Diana asks, watching the young woman who is now being surrounded by young men, seemingly thinking that Steve has already abandoned his partner. Darcy weaves around them expertly, ignoring them without being dismissive, and kindness in her every gesture even as they press around her; circling like hungry sharks looking for fame.

“He knows. He was hesitant at first but Darcy was firm that he give me a chance. I think I’m growing on him. Alfred and Tim like me at least. She’s very grounded Diana, even when reaching for the stars. But she’s gentle in a way that I haven’t experienced much in my life. My ma would love her.”

“And you used me as a test?” Steve hears the edge to her voice and knows that Diana is itching to use her rope, wanting to ensure that Steve is being truthful, but Diana only need ask. Steve wasn’t going to lie to the woman who had protected him and the Howlies as much as they did her.

“A little. There’s not much that knocks Darcy off her groove. I knew you might, and I admit I was curious how she’d react. More to test our relationship I suppose and see what we might have to work on than to really be cruel to her.”

Diana looks at him critically at that, not sure she liked that answer or that Steve was really prepared for what he might have unleashed. She did not know Darcy but she knew women like her, women who were of a high social standing and so unused to not getting their way. It surprises her when Darcy pops back up, balancing three glasses of champagne handing one to Diana and Steve before sipping her own.

“So Steve, any other war buddies here tonight? Unless they’re Peggy Carter I doubt they’ll look as amazing as Diana does in a ball gown but I’m willing to see how dashing Barnes looks in one. Nat admits she’s curious about that as well.”

He laughs, his free hand clasping his chest, “No. I don’t think you have any more old friends to worry about tonight. If you give Bucky some of Thor’s mead you’ll be able to convince him easier.”

Bucky and Nat do end up joining them and Diana finds herself drawn into the women’s conversation and easily keeping up with them. The few times she stumbles, unsure of who they’re talking about, Darcy is waiting for her with a name or clue to bring her back to where they are at conversationally. Eventually Diana mentions Steve’s test and Darcy shrugs unbothered for the most part.

“Eh, I tested him too by going on an actual date with someone else before I admitted my feelings to him. Bit off a bit more than I expected, but Steve still helped me get myself out of it without making me feel guilty at all. Plus if I was going to be jealous of one of his friends I wouldn’t be a very good girlfriend.”

Diana nods, and readjusts her estimation of the woman in front of her. The rest of the evening passes by quickly, Steve and Darcy staying close to one another. They dance, they laugh, they talk to their friends, and they do work the room a little soliciting donations for the gala.

At the end of the night the Avengers team make their way back into the limo Tony provided and head home. There’s talk of ordering food but Darcy and Steve head back to his apartment. Darcy takes a shower, ridding her hair of the product Clint had applied to it, and then pulls on one of Steve’s shirts and the extra pair of sleep shorts she’s started keeping at his apartment. Steve finishes his own shower, and joins her in the living room on his wide couch, some movie’s playing softly in the background.

“I’m sorry I sprung Diana on you tonight. I really hadn’t seen her yet. I’ve seen Wonder Woman of course but not in a setting where we could catch up.” Steve wedges himself between Darcy and the couch wanting the comforting weight of her up against him.

She twists to kiss him and settles into his embrace. “Its okay, like I told her we’ve both tested each other now. Do you think she liked me? Wonder Woman has always been one of my heroes.”

Steve barks out a laugh. “Yes I think she liked you. Especially as she got to know you better.”

They relax in each other’s company not really taking in the TV, but absently enjoying the background noise as they talk.

“Darcy?”

“Hm?”

“I love you. And I love the joy you bring with you and the light that fills my life when you’re in it.”

“Steve. That’s so sweet.” She kisses him, and he starts to pull back, and she can practically _see_ the words of assurance he’s going to give her. “Shh you silly man. You are so sweet and caring, and…and everything I could want in a partner and I love you too.”

He turns the TV off then and sweeps her up into his arms, heading to his bedroom fully intending on showing her how he felt for her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo what do we think? I LOVE Wonder Woman and couldn't stop thinking about what if she worked with Steve during WW2, and how the MCU would merge with the DCU. Anyways this is definitely one of my favorite chapters! 
> 
> Have a good night everyone! I will be back with another chapter sometime later this week-maybe tomorrow!


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Someone comes to call on Darcy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this is the end of our story besides an epilogue...hope you like it!
> 
> Another small warning for canon typical kidnapping/violence though nothing major, see the end notes for a detailed description. Either way if you need to skip start the skip at "knocked unconscious" and pick back up at "He took her to medical"

Christmas arrives in New York City and Darcy is…upset to find that she is still not allowed to return to Gotham. So instead of getting to invite all her friends to a Gotham retreat, they more or less have a repeat of Thanksgiving but this time with presents and slightly different food. It’s still fun and full of family, friends, and cheer but it is a little different from what Darcy had come to expect.

When New Years’ comes a week later, a bunch of their friends go to a party Stark is throwing but Steve and Darcy battle the crowds in Time Square. Steve had gone when he was younger, but Darcy admitted it was a touristy thing that she would love to do. So they bundled up, packed a bunch of food, hot chocolate, and other supplies and went to the crowded square so early Darcy was having a hard time keeping her eyes open. Halfway through the day Wanda, Pietro, Peter, and MJ join them bolstering them with more supplies. Darcy had a lot of fun and enjoyed the joyful crazy atmosphere that filled the city that night.

The next few weeks however are a disappointment compared to the weeks before. Work gets crazy busy as villains make good on what must be their new years resolution to be more evil. She sees Steve for only snatches of minutes at a time as he’s constantly shifting from one mission to the next. And to top everything else off she’s hearing less and less from Bruce. Tim is still texting her but Bruce has become better at keeping him in the dark and so they’re clueless together.

Darcy, MJ, Jane, and Pepper are getting ready for a girls’ night as the only women not currently on a mission when things take a turn for the worst. Darcy had left the building needing to stretch her legs and get their dinner when someone swooped down behind her. She turned around quickly, reaching immediately for the tracker Bruce asked her to always wear. She finds her arm batted away and a hand grabs the chain and pulls hard, throwing the broken necklace on the ground. As a fist swings towards her head she ducks and goes to run away screaming, knowing whoever this person may be is bad news for her. Something comes shooting out towards her feet, wire wrapping around her ankles and tripping her. She falls with an oof as the wind is knocked out of her. Darcy wriggles around still trying to find an out when she’s knocked unconscious.

~~~

Darcy wakes up, groggy and finding it hard to focus. She’s in an empty room of some sort but she couldn’t tell you what sort of building or where. There’s someone standing off to the side but she can’t make out much. A red shirt, a leather jacket, a red motorcycle helmet with the visor down, worn out jeans, and scuffed boots. It smells bad and she can’t help but gag a little. The person turns, and takes off his helmet. The young man underneath is mostly clean shaven besides a little scruff. His hair is mostly black but around the temple framing his face is white. The blue eyes that meet her own are angry and aged.

“Long time no see Darce.” The voice is rougher than it used to be, and the last time she had heard it in person there were a few remaining squeaks from puberty but Darcy knew, deep in her bones looking at the man before her she knew.

“Jason?”

“Been going by Red Hood lately. Its been driving dear old Brucie nuts.”

Darcy shakes her head, unbelievingly. “Jason, how?”

“Oh you know, Lazarus pits were involved. People looking to hurt Batman. All the crazy things that just…happen, over and over again, once you start to wear a suit.”

Jason Todd, once Robin to Bruce’s Batman, circles Darcy. She stares straightforward trying to comprehend. He attaches something to her shoulder blades and she can’t help but shiver. And the memories come unbidden of the video the Joker streamed of his torment of Jason and Darcy whimpers at what she suddenly knows is coming.

“You know Darce, when you come back from the pits, you don’t really remember much. The League of Assassins was happy to use and train me, enjoying their private joke of using Batman’s protégé against him. Of course once I returned to Gotham I started to remember. And as I remembered I looked into what happened to me. What the Joker did. What Bruce did when I…when I died.”

“Jason—”

He slaps her, and her head jerks to the side causing her to bite her tongue.

“He. Did. Nothing! Darcy. He let him go. He let the Green Arrow take him to Arkham.” The twenty year old’s fists tighten and Darcy sees the ten year old who she had first met on the street, reminded of how he was so used to being alone he was ready to fight anyone and everyone.

“No Jason, he didn’t. Green Arrow took the Joker to Arkham because Bruce was looking for you, for your body.”

“I wasn’t worth breaking a rule for. The Joker _killed_ me and Bruce let him go.”

“He almost did.” Darcy tells him small and unsure. She had asked Bruce this same question, once he had finally returned after the Battle of New York. Jason shakes his head, and Darcy can feel the tension building around them. So she talks the same way she always had to him. Honest but kind. “You’re right, he didn’t break his rule. But he almost did. And he gave up being the Batman for two years. And the only reason he came back was because aliens invaded New York. Him giving it up? Is something I never thought I’d see. I asked, Jason, when I found out. He told me that my anger at him being Batman was worth bearing. That he would keep being Batman. You died, and he…gave up. And he might have broken his rule, he admitted once, that he almost did. But Superman, Wonder Woman, and Green Arrow were there. They stopped him, and then he stopped.

“Bruce doesn’t know _how_ to deal with grief. You know he doesn’t. If he was left alone with the Joker and his grief. Who knows? They didn’t leave him alone, and when he was the Joker was gone, and so was your body. He couldn’t bring you back, he couldn’t take care of you anymore. Bruce was sure that the part of you that would want revenge was the part that had been fueled by years of hurt, hate, anger, and neglect. And that wasn’t the parts of you he was trying to help. It wasn’t the person that Dick was hoping you’d become.”

“I’m not that person!” Jason steps toward Darcy angry and he grabs her shoulders roughly. “And now I can never be that person!”

Darcy feels her heart ache for the loss in his voice. “Jason, unless the pits have given you the ability to see into the future you can’t know what time will bring. Yes, maybe you won’t be that person they hoped you’d be. But I bet you still have a shot at the person _I’d_ hoped you’d be.”

“What’s that?”

“Happy. And someone who does their best to embrace all that life has to offer. Someone who doesn’t make his choices off of his ghosts or his heroes. Someone that adds good to the world when possible. I’d be happiest if you were something usual like a gardener. But no one I know does anything usual so, I’ll take what I can get.”

“What if, Darcy Wayne, what if what makes me happy is hurting Bruce. We both know that the easiest way of doing that is to kill you.”

Darcy feels as if he’s punched her, and has to take a moment to regain her breath. “Well Jason…I can’t stop you. I’m tied up, you took my Taser. Bruce is in Gotham, Dick is in either Gotham or Blüdhaven, and Steve is on a mission. And you’re right; it would hurt Bruce. In a deep, visceral way. It is after all why he won’t reveal his civilian identity. The thing is though Jason, that it won’t change the past. And it won’t soothe the hurt. He won’t have magically shifted to have picked revenge. Ultimately Jason, you owe yourself better. If you want to be a hero, a villain, an anti-hero, or something completely new is up to you. You’re not Robin anymore. And you deserve a chance to explore that. Just like Dick did. Just like Tim is about to do. We all deserve the chance to leave the shadow of the bat. We all deserve a chance to be us, just us.”

She closes her eyes, not sure what he’s going to do. One minute passes. And then another. After she can’t stand it anymore, she cracks open one eye and Jason is gone. The motorcycle helmet is also gone. She tests her bindings and find they’ve been given enough slack that she can get out of them. Darcy makes her way out of the building—some half finished apartment building. She finds someone who will let her borrow their phone and calls Alfred telling him she needs a ride. After a deep sigh of relief he says very good and asks her to wait a few minutes. He sends Steve, who had just gotten home from a mission. He asks what happened—they knew her tracker had gone off for a second before being destroyed and Jane and Pepper had sent out that she was missing—but she told him she wasn’t ready to talk about it.

~~~

He takes her to medical, for at least a check up. There are a few minor injuries but they discharge her within an hour and a half. They go to her apartment and she calls Bruce putting him on speaker. Then she tells Bruce, Tim, Dick, and Steve that the Red Hood person they were dealing with was Jason Todd. 

Bruce demands she come home, at least for a day or two, worry etched into every word. Darcy is too tired and homesick to fight with him about allowing her to come back now but not before. Steve goes with her, reluctant to let her out of his sight just yet. When he tells her she asks about the missions she knows are waiting for anyone to be able to take them. He waves her off but she finds out that he had asked Tony to be taken off of the rotation for missions for a couple weeks.

Its weird having Steve at the manor. All the same Darcy appreciates the attention and love being doted on her. She comments to Steve one night that she feels bad cause Jason needs this too and he’s not getting it. Things do go back to normal though. After a few nights off Bruce and Tim go back on patrol and Dick goes back to Blüdhaven. Darcy uses that as an opportunity and drags Steve to the City Auditorium with some spray paint.

“I met Jason here. I told you I snuck in once when I was a teen. When we left he was out here doing a piece and had run out of paint. He was looking at Dick’s bike with an eye to steal it when we found him. I gave him some money and told him I liked what he was doing.”

Steve listens, wondering what exactly Darcy is going to do. She starts painting the walls, a pretty decent image starting to form. He wants to joke about how the society dame is a talented street artist but she still seems on edge. After about an hour an image of two people outside of a shadow figure stand with some complex curls and swirls.

“Once Jason joined us at the manor we practiced his art style. He taught me how to leave messages within the painting. I don’t know that he’ll see it but if he does maybe he’ll know he can reach out for help. He deserves to be loved and help healing.”

“Darcy Wayne, you have one of the biggest, kindest hearts I’ve had the pleasure to care for. I hope he sees it and we can help him.”

By the end of the week they’re both ready to go back to New York. The time in Gotham has reassured Darcy that she will be back at some point, but that right now her life is in New York. She hasn’t heard from Jason yet, but she’s secretly holding out help that he will. Steve’s already started talking to her about how they helped Bucky and she’s hoping some of the Avengers’ methods will work on the man who seemed so lost.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: Darcy is kidnapped and her kidnapper hits her, threatens electrocution and death. Also prior violence to a side character is mentioned. 
> 
> Well...what do we think?


	12. Chapter Twelve: Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Springtime comes to the city, and with it brings new beginnings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is! Our Epilogue. I hope you enjoy, and thank you all so much for reading.

Spring was blooming in New York City. There were still snowy days, and things were still more gray than colorful just yet, but there were subtle signs every now and then. Darcy and Steve had celebrated their first Valentine’s Day together. It was cute and thoughtful. Rather than brave the crowds and potential paparazzi sightings, Steve had set up a beautiful candle lit dinner with her favorite comfort food recipe he had asked Alfred for. They had ended the night with a movie snuggled under a cozy blanket, d’Artagnan curled near their feet.

But that was several weeks ago, and now Steve was on a mission. Darcy was at a park close to the tower enjoying the first warm day of the season, though she was still in a long sleeve shirt and a jacket along with a hat. Bruce still checked in every week about if she had heard from Jason and every week Darcy told him she hadn’t. She had even been telling the truth for almost all of the weeks. For the past two weeks though she hadn’t told her brother that in the alley near the Tower—the one that she and Steve took currently to avoid the reporters that lingered around the lobby on slow news days—an art piece had appeared. One that mirrored the one she and Steve had left in Gotham before returning to the city. She had pointed it out to Steve, and he had in turn brought her Taser to Tony, asking him to give it an upgrade. After Tony had spent a few days with the thing, Steve brought it back asking Darcy to please be careful and keep him in the loop when possible. Last night when he had a chance to check in, Darcy had told him of the additions to the piece asking her to meet at this very park.

She was beginning to think that perhaps Jason had decided that he wasn’t ready to meet yet, as he was over thirty minutes late. So when a warm body slides onto the bench next to her, she is a little startled. Still when she turns to look at the newcomer, there sits Jason with the white streak in his hair and the same worn brown leather motorcycle jacket, red shirt and red helmet hanging from his hands.

“Jason.”

“Darcy.”

She sits in silence, one of the few people who could always wait him out. Finally he speaks, voice cracking a little from disuse, “So I’ve been thinkin’ about what you said.”

“That’s good. And what have you decided?” Darcy asks, sounding calmer than she feels.

“I think the pit’s messed with my head Darce. More than I thought. More than I could comprehend when I first started rememberin’ things. Maybe more still from what I think now. I threatened you…you, Darcy Wayne, one of the only people who’s ever taken me as I am, no matter what that might look like. If I was…me I never would have done that. And I am so, so sorry. Darcy I—” he breaks off, tears running down his cheeks and blocking his voice. Darcy hesitates for one second before she rubs his back trying to soothe him. Darcy had sought out her therapist almost as soon as she had gotten home and was still seeing her. She had mostly processed what had happened between her and Jason and had come to the same conclusion her one time friend was coming to now.

“How can I help Jason?”

“I want…I want to come home. But, I’m not ready to go to Gotham.”

“Okay, stay here. I have to make a phone call.”

Darcy stands up and moves just a little bit away making sure to stay in Jason’s sight. She calls Tony and hopes he has as big a heart as she thinks he does. He grumps about taking in another stray linked to Bruce, but when she corrects him that its not for Bruce its for her he melts. Tony does ask that Jason see a therapist immediately upon entry in the tower so that they could assess his needs, he also asks Darcy if Nat can run a threat risk evaluation of him. Darcy says she can but that she knows it’s going to be high, he was trained by Bruce and in the time since had become someone who had managed to stay steps ahead of him for months. Tony privately agrees but insists Natasha make her own judgments. Darcy returns to Jason and tells him Tony’s terms.

“You are welcome there Jason, and we can get you the help that you need. But Tony does have a whole building full of people he’s got to think about too. So, is that alright?”

Jason runs his thumb down the side of his hand, before sighing, “Yes, I will participate, honestly and to the best of my ability, to the Black Widow’s threat assessment. And I will go see the therapist. I just want to figure out all-all of this.”

“We’ll figure it out Jay, promise.” She sits and tells him about her own therapist visits, and how almost everyone on the Avengers team goes weekly, and that anyone who doesn’t is required to go at least once every two months and must get cleared each visit to continue that. “Steve and Tony actually worked on that policy together. Tony had experienced what neglect of his mental health did to him and his relationships personally. And after the whole thing with HYDRA in SHIELD, Steve felt many of his colleagues turned to HYDRA because of poor care that didn’t place personal well being over that of the organization. That if SHIELD had put more attention to the agents and other employees, made sure they rested when they needed, and got other help if needed that HYDRA wouldn’t have put their hooks into as many people.”

She sits with Jason for a while, until he nods and says he’s ready to go. They return to the tower and Darcy sits in the small waiting room while he talks to the therapist. Natasha shows up while she’s waiting. She asks Darcy what type of threat she thinks Jason might be, from experience. And when he comes out of the therapist’s office looking both heavier and lighter than before, Darcy follows Natasha and Jason to the gym where Natasha tests the young man. Tony texts her the details of where Jason will be staying, on one of the five floors between the Avengers’ levels and the rest of the tower but not on the same floor as her. He also tells her that Jason is not allowed unrestricted access to her apartment yet. He had told the therapist that while he regretted his actions and didn’t want to hurt Darcy he could still see the merit of hurting Bruce. But that more than anything he did want to become a version of himself that was good, and capable of making progress. Darcy texted Steve an update about everything and after much debate texted Bruce.

_Jason reached out. Tony is helping. He’s not ready to have anything to do with Gotham or you._

**Darcy, I think this is a very bad idea.**

**He was going to kill you**

_Bruce. We are taking care of it._

_Tony’s upped my Taser, Jason has restricted access for right now. Like Winter Soldier first come in from the cold restricted access. Sam, Nat, and Bucky are going to be constant companions of his until he gets cleared by multiple therapists._

_He needs help though, and I am not leaving him stranded with nothing!_

**…**

**Fine.**

**Let me know if you need help. **

**Dick is…upset.**

_YOU TOLD DICK?!?!?!?!_

**Of course.**

_You are an absolute peanut skin sometimes Bruce_

_Just the plastic covering on scissors that need scissors to open_

_The little tag on socks that get stuck inside and irritate your ankle_

_I can NOT believe you told him_

Sighing Darcy also texts Dick. _You can’t come to New York. He needs space_

** _Darcy, he kidnapped you_ **

_Yeah, not the 1st time ive been kidnapped_

_Honestly probably not the last either_

_the avengers are taking care of me, steve will take care of me_

_so I can help take care of him…he deserves help Johnny he’s been through a lot_

** _I hate this and object to it_ **

** _And if he hurts you I will hurt him back_ **

_That wont be necessary_

Darcy and Natasha take Jason to his new apartment and both Darcy and Jason listen attentively to the spy as she lays out the rules for Jason. She finishes by saying, “Honestly almost all of these same safety procedures were put in place for the Winter Soldier. There are some remarkable, concerning similarities in how HYDRA treated him and how the League of Assassins treated you, especially the methods of memory suppression. We’ve had a lot of success with him, and the therapists are ultimately optimistic about your chances of achieving your goals. He has chosen to join the Avengers. I know you said you were unsure if that was something you were interested in, if you make a decision let your therapist know and they’ll make the decision when the time comes.”

He nods in understanding and opens his door. He swallows thickly, and tells them both, “Thank you for everything. I’m going to try, really and truly. I want to be better.”

Nat smiles at him, and says, “We know Jason. That’s why you’re still here.”

Darcy bids them both goodnight and heads back down to her apartment. She’s surprised to find that her lights are on, but there making dinner is Steve with music playing softly in the background.

“Why hello there stranger.”

“Hello yourself beautiful!” Steve greets her with a warm smile, and a kiss once she’s made it closer to him. “Tell me about your day doll. I wanna hear all about it.”

“Well, it has been a day love, its been a day.” Darcy heads into her room, changing quickly into her pajamas ready to stay in for the night. When she comes back out to the kitchen she’s carrying her stuffed otter. She sits down at the table and tells her boyfriend all about her day. And when she’s done, he slides two plates of spaghetti unto the table and tells her what he can about his own day. As she listens Darcy silently delights in the simple and mundane nature of this. Dinner and conversation about what occurred during their day. She hadn’t been sure she’d ever get this. And sure, life as Darcy Wayne was never simple. After all, her brother fought crime dressed loosely as a bat and her boyfriend was also a crime fighter, who just so happened to be born before the Great Depression happened. But she was loved, deeply, and slowly, ever so slowly, was making a life for herself, outside the shadow of her past, and the ever reaching shadow of the bat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again thank you for reading! I appreciate the time you each have spent with my story and the kudos, bookmarks, and comments that are left. This is the end of our story for the time being, though I have some other ideas simmering for this series, that will probably be added eventually.


End file.
